Kiss of an Animal Princess
by Kremlin Dusky
Summary: Fakir is still loyal to his love for Ahiru, who is eternally a duck. Things change when Fakir and Ahiru learn about Ahiru's true identity. Jealousy and doubts arise when people cling on to their desires and dreams.
1. Things will be like this forever?

**The Kiss of an Animal Princess **

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Princess Tutu. If I did, I would make another season all about the growing love of (human) Ahiru and Fakir and maybe even add in hints of adult content. :D I'm so evil.

Edit: I corrected the names! Thanks Peach the Hedgehog!

Edit2: I changed some things so they made more sense.

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**CHAPTER 1: **Things will be like this forever?

Mukashi, mukashi...

Ahiru was a duck. Ahiru _means _duck. She was born a duck. She would remain a duck. For now and forever?

As a duck, she brooded over the past in her spare time. Her time as anything remotely human was too short! Boredom seemed to stretch the hours and these memories of hope and despair were reduced to a montage of her drama and closure. How she longed to have Princess Tutu's svelte torso and the fluid movements of her arms and legs again. Even her time as an uncouth ballet pupil seemed agreeable!

Our heroine was retired from action. She was now a mundane wisp of canary yellow feathers. It was her designated role, since hatching to mature age.

Ahiru floated across the surface of her delicate, rippling lake. She waded beneath the docks that Fakir frequented. There was a bit of fog but shards of light filtered through, leaving her feathers sunkissed as usual.

She drifted in circles impatiently. She always worried about Fakir, since he was the last friend truly in her life. Fakir's afternoon classes had been over about an hour ago! She could tell for there was a small doggy door installed at the entrance of their home, picking the screendoor open with her bill, and inside the small breakfast nook, a small clock sat on the counter.

As the days flew by, she found herself enamored with the former knight. He only had the power to feed her and the love of a master for its pet, but with this power, she still found mirth and excitement. She was only a duck now. Only Ahiru.

Pique and Lilie had no recollection of her existence when Fakir inquired. Neither did their fellow students. Rue and Mytho... had disappeared into a world in the likes of a fairytale. They also seemed to have disappeared mutually. Drosselmeyer was merely a puppet and his purpose was fulfilled. He invaded her privacy no longer because he existed no longer. His story was finished! There was no one else to remember Ahiru but Fakir.

Another odd occurence concerned the disappearence from all animals in the school. The animals of this world became universely simple. No one seemed to notice or remember they had anything had been different before. Fakir and Ahiru found themselves trapped in a world where animals coexist with intelligence and humankind no longer.

Ahiru lodged her webbed feet ashore and shook the remaining water off. After doing so, she waddled slowly at first and dislodged her wings. Her wings batted perpetually until she grinded upwards and became airborne.

She would find Fakir herself. What was taking him as long as it did?

The town was an eerie splash of gray and peach hues from the sky. It was an unimportant world that she didn't trust to be pristine. It was the afternoon and Fakir's classes were dismissed an hour ago! She could read the clock tower, and hear it as well!

It was then that her crystal clear eyes dilated upon the next sight.

The sound of haughty and fresh laughter. It belonged to a woman who seemed quite familiar to Fakir as there was much less than elbow space between herself and Fakir. Who was that woman! She had a smile that befit the sun and cinnamon-coloured tresses restrained by a single bright green hairband! Her dress was conservative, milky and covered every inch of her body and yet, Ahiru was still bothered by it.

Oh, she forgot to flap. Ahiru was crashing!

_Who was this woman?!_

**CRASH**!

Ahiru landed with no majesty among the bushes. She was miserable with these questions:

_Why_ must she invest her emotions in a man and incompatibility? _Why _did Rue, who had been cruel and manipulative to Prince Mytho for many occasions, deserve unconditional love and betrothal to the prince?! _Why_ had she labored so hard for any of these people when she gained nothing of value but a sense of accomplishment that no one else recognized?

_Why_ was Fakir walking next to this girl?

"Do you have a girlfriend?" What a great time to eavesdrop, Ahiru! Every feather on every inch of her body bristled and quivered. Ahiru lay beside their path in the bushes next to their path.

Fakir stopped walking upon hearing the question. Shame ran across his face and his eyes twinkled with a hint of sadness and melancholy.

"I'm afraid that is a complicated question to answer. Never the less, I enjoyed your company and your service today." the voice of Fakir resonated in the sudden silence. It was sweet and rich to listen to, if she abandoned what exactly was said. Ahiru almost muttered a quack of dismay. What exactly did he mean by "company" and "service?!"

"Fakir..." Ahiru murmured in her head.

"It's so gallant meeting a man from a ballet school. I was expecting an oddball..."

"I am an oddball." Fakir scarcely grinned.

Now that Ahiru was closer, she saw Fakir holding many notebooks and hardback textbooks with ease. This girl foreign to their lives was not concerned about his load, as she laced her fingers together like a prayer.

Ahiru snubbed their scene. It was then she saw the gleaming slits of familiar eyes.

"N-neko-sensei?" Ahiru fumbled and dropped on the tuft of her little chest after recognizing him.

She was correct. It was who she addressed as Neko-sensei but it was him no more. His soul had become simple, his tongue defied English and he became a regular of the food chain. His purr threatened Ahiru and for the first time, she had more to worry about than being engaged to the feline.

Ahiru made a run for it!

"Quack, quack, quack!" She waddled onto the cobblestone as the cat darted soon after her.

It wasn't long before she approached Fakir and the mysterious new girl.

"...Ahiru?!" Fakir said in dismay.

She raced in and out of Fakir's legs in a pattern that resembled the sign of infinity. There wasn't much room for him to stand as Neko-sensei pursued the duckling!

"Benito!" The woman's voice alarmed Neko-sensei and proceeded to make sour noises with her lips and tongue between the words, "Stop it! Come here, boy."

With that order, the cat pounced onto the lady's stomach and her hands pinched the sides of his belly.

"I'm very sorry for this. I had no idea Benito wanders this far. He usually stays around the cafe!"

Her laughter was so refreshing. Why did such a good thing make Ahiru scowl?

Fakir grimaced at Ahiru but graced the lady with a gentleman's smile soonafter. He leaned over and tenderly scooped Ahiru into his firm, warm hands. The contact was enough to rush the blood to her little head.

"This is my pet as well. My thoughts are the same. I didn't know she would fly this far away from home." He exchanged a penetrating glance with Ahiru and they seemed to be able converse their feelings and ideas by vision alone.

"A duck. I didn't know you could tame those! Aren't you worried it will fly away and never come back?"

Ahiru grunted upon receiving the name "it." Fakir pinched her bill to prevent her from quacking a clamor or from flying up to the lady and pecking her.

"No, no. She always comes back home. However, she might have been worried that I wouldn't." Fakir gazed at Ahiru with a dashing smile that could melt any teenage heart.

The sky cracked with thunder and ached like a stomach that pleads for food.

"I can see it's going to be a storm tonight. Well, we'll be on our way before it pours."

"Alright... Good luck, Fakir!" Gloria said sincerely.

"Adieu, Gloria."

They parted and Fakir and Ahiru remained silent for most of the way home. The only sound that filled the air was the snap of Fakir's boots crushing every fallen leaf, astray twig and fragile pebble and dirt clod.

"She works at a cafe. Neko-sensei is finally 'married' to a white cat. They have several kittens lurking around the cafe. It's a nice place... I go there to study these days. I'm also busy with new research..."

It was as if he read her mind and answered each question she had in correspondence.

That night, Fakir sprawled across his bedspread in the candlelight and looped his arm around a blank journal Ahiru struggled to write on with ink and pen. She sealed her bill along it and illustrated sloppy handwriting. Fakir took time to read and register his responses.

"Why do I go to that cafe everyday, you ask? What, you seem upset that I spend time there after school. Someone seems a little _jealous_." A sleezy grin lingered on Fakir's face and he chortled at her expense.

"Mmm!" Ahiru glared but couldn't deny the truth, the pen muffling her. She_ was_ jealous! She ended up tightly crunching the pen while furiously glaring and pressed the pen to the page with severe force, causing the tip to break.

"Hey, hey! You broke the tip! Be careful, Gloria picked out that pen for me!"

Ahiru continued to glower at him with a look that said "Is that so?"

She snapped the pen in two without hesitation.

"You are _some_ little creature." Fakir narrowed his eyes and cleaned the remaining remnants of the pen.

After cleaning her mess, he removed the book and ink bottle from his bed and placed them on the nightstand, beside his reading glasses. He opened the drawer to pop them inside but his hand froze. He stayed in this trance for a long pause and then brought his focus to Ahiru.

"Are you happy being a duck?" Fakir asked abruptly.

Ahiru quacked at the sudden qravity of the question.

"You were born a duck and we cannot change that."

Droplets of rain proceeded to pitter upon the terrace of their shelter. Strings of water suspended themselves from the edge of the rooftiles, staining windows with obscurity and cascading down a pipe that wormed from the top to the foundation.

A torrent of envelopes and stationary were unveiled, among other things like extra scroll paper and materials, in the drawer he had opened. It was too late, Ahiru noticed!

"These are letters..."

"Letters?" Ahiru thought.

"From other girls."

If only Ahiru could say "Oh."

"I'm surrounded by girls all the time. It _is_ a ballet school, after all..."

Ahiru's little heart rapidly beat.

"Being around them... makes me feel guilty..."

Ahiru attentively read his face.

"It must be horrible for you. You must still love Mytho, a human, and he's probably in an altar with Rue as we speak. No one remembers who you are and you are a great person. I can't help but feel sorry for you."

Ahiru dislodged her wings and flapped them in a crossing motion in front of her chest to indicate "No!" with heavy emphasis. She didn't want him to worry about her like this! Or did she...?

"Drosselmeyer was cruel to tease you like that." He stroked her tuft in his strong index finger suggestively. They stared at eachother intensely until Fakir propped himself off the spread. His left hand dived into the heap of letters and crunched them tightly with a clenched fist.

"I don't know why these letters don't mean anything to me. I don't feel anything when I read them. Seeing the words 'I love you' once, twice or a thousand times does not make me happy or arouse any other feeling." His eyes glazed over at his hand, full of a passionate, underlying anger.

His eyes became gentle once again and so did lips.

"As long as you and I are together, I don't need anyone else by my side."

Those were brave words from a man coming of age and growing hormones. The stationery and ripped envelopes were discarded in a waste basket. Ahiru was moved by his actions. Her eyes glistened with watery speckles of light.

"Well, I have an essay to write." He plucked a quill off of Ahiru's body, much to her disdain. What a way to ruin the moment!

"Quack!" She bickered.

"Hey, you're the reason all my pens break! My best one broke when I was trying to write your story!" He chuckled.

Ahiru blushed and fluttered to the top of a desk, her amazing blue eyes watching Fakir twitter with her feather and take out the ink he had just put away to dip it in. She was esteemed that Fakir could still remember their glory days!

Their relationship was strange. He couldn't love her! A love for a duck is preposterous! It was perhaps on the same grounds as beastiality to enjoy the love of a woman, who is in fact a duck! How could Ahiru ever think that Fakir, a man coming of age with growing hormones, could ever return her love!

But as long as they could exist together like this, their friendship was good enough for her. It wasn't right for Ahiru to feel the way she did about the young man but she would never get the chance to act upon it, that's right!

_Things seemed like they were going to stay this way forever. Or so it seemed..._

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R&R please! I need some comments to know how I'm doing. :3_  
_


	2. The unsteady arrival of the Frog Prince!

**Kiss of an Animal Princess **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Princess Tutu. There would be more Ahiru x Fakir luff in it.:D

**Edit: **:D Corrected more junk. Thanks guys, I really need it.

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**CHAPTER 2: **The unsteady arrival of the Frog Prince!

Girls horded the corner of the classroom, thriving with annoying gossip. Sometimes a lad would visit their "world" and provide them with pickup lines doomed to failure and perhaps witty banter.

Lilie, despite forgetting everything about Ahiru, was still a force to reckon with and was currently the class gossip. She seemed ecstatic with news as she arrived swiftly and stopped in front of the desks of these girls, wavering with the inertia of a car that just parked. Pique followed nonchalantly behind her, nearly dragging her school bag.

"Did you hear? Fakir has a pet duck!" Lilie informed them.

"That is so _cute!_" The girls seemed to reach a new level of pitch in fangirl history.

"The weird thing is, he talks to it! And he actually _smiles_!" Pique added.

"Fakir? Smiling? _No way_!" Excitement rolled in the eyes of the estrogen-filled creatures.

"Yes way!" Pique clarified, pointing at them with a sharp index finger that rivaled Uncle Sam's.

"Pique and I did some undercover work, you see!" Lilie donned a deerstalker hat on her head and a bubble pipe in her hand for the moment.

"That's right!" Pique nodded, her eyes shut and chin resting on the gap between her thumb and the said index finger.

"We followed Fakir home yesterday." Lilie stated. Stalkers didn't seem very strange in this group of girls.

"But fell asleep behind a barrel while he was studying at some café!" Pique said alternatively.

"When we woke up, kittens were sleeping on us!" Lilie seemed to think of it fondfully.

"Not to mention doing _other _things!" Pique complained with a wince.

"And some woman was walking away! _With Fakir._"

"_No way!" _The small group of girls ogled.

"Yes way!" Pique repeated.

"He can't have a girlfriend!" A girl said, disappointed already.

"Tough luck, it seems like he does! But at least it wasn't the girl he was walking with." Lilie patted her on the back, disregarding her uneasiness, and continued to smile like sunshine.

"What do you mean?" Another girl inquired.

"Well, continuing with the story!" Lilie ignored her cry.

"We were covered in the business of animals!" Pique grumbled.

"We followed them in the forest and saw his mysterious pet! It was a duck, it was so _cute_!"

"Wasn't there a storm last night?" Said another.

"Ah! That's right! And we stayed in a tree all night…It was way too messy to walk back to the dorms in the rain!" Lilie answered nervously.

"_I _already finished my essay so I have nothing to worry about." Pique shamelessly said.

The group gave the pair awkward glances.

"But when we woke up and the storm was gone…" Pique started to say.

"It was tough but here is fruit of our labor!" Lilie interrupted by presenting the girls with a photo from her breast pocket.

It was Fakir, naked from the chin to his chest, sleeping under his covers next to Ahiru, in her duck form of course.

The classroom was engulfed with a squeal of insanity!

Silence soon followed for Fakir loomed over the girls with a glare that could start a holocaust.

"Fa-fakir! We had no idea you were here!" Lilie said, pivoting to him with the picture now in his view. He soon blushed and embarrassment replaced his anger.

"You have no right to take a picture of that!" He argued, red as a tomato on the sun. He swiped it but another hand confiscated it from him as well as Lilie's detective hat and bubble pipe.

The hand belonged to a teacher a foot taller than he was. This teacher was a sharp woman with mint-green smooth hair tied in a ponytail and pale skin. Her eyes were as black as onyx.

"Fakir, is there a reason for such an uproar in the morning? If you wouldn't mind, I would like to start class. You're keeping our transfer student waiting. Would the rest of you take your seats?"

Fakir's eyebrow cocked strangely. He forgot all about Lilie's and Pique's misdeed. Transfer student?

"Yes, Michiko-sensei." Everyone else answered in unison. Fakir was the only one left standing and he was embarrassed to be the last to find his seat in the north west corner, near his reflection of his favorite window. They were on the second story and could see well across campus.

The door slid open and in stepped a small bishounen clad in a handsome blue uniform. He was unusual for he was as short as a petite girl and he had a scruffy light-green head of hair but somehow, both elements added to his charm. His eyes shimmered like lime green jewels. The girls were basking in his image and eating him up! Incessant whispers of "Kawaii" roamed across the classroom while sighs of rivalry were released from the other male classmates.

"This is your new classmate, in the amateur ballet class, Ouji Kero." Michiko-sensei read off a clipboard on her desk.

"All the girls can call me Kero." The new guy winked like a debonair, as if he had always been here.

The women gave him much desired attention! The men in the class seemed repulsed by this sorry excuse for a "man." Fakir was indifferent but at the same time, intrigued.

"Choose any seat you want, Ouji-san, (a few male members of the class snickered at the teacher formally addressing a student as "prince") and feel free to ask a classmate for notes."

Fakir waited for Kero to sit next to any of the potential lucky ladies but to his surprise, Kero advanced towards Fakir with a smile that never ceased. Fakir, little to say, was a bit creeped out. He dropped his school bag on the desk neighboring Fakir's and seated himself properly, fiddling with his thumbs.

"As for the rest of you, please get out your essays and pass them up." Machiko-sensei demanded and some classmates unfortunate enough to forget to do it or left it at their dorm groaned. Why Fakir didn't live in any of these dorms was due to his father's country home located here.

After Fakir collected the essays of his row and stacked them, he noticed Kero still gazing at him, the papers of his row also stacked in his hand. What was wrong with this kid?

"Can I borrow your notes? You seem like a smart fellow!" Kero whispered to Fakir.

"… Right…Sure." Fakir answered, unprepared for his forward approach. He rummaged through his bag to grab his notes and pencil case, though it contained pens and an ink bottle alone.

"Don't be too concerned with the difficulty of the academics around here. The most important part of this school is the ballet." Fakir handed Kero several paperclipped pages.

"I see!" Kero cheerfully replied, obliging his papers and setting them in front of him.

"I heard that! You are wrong, my dear Fakir! The balance of academics and ballet is an important part of a dancer's life! And if the work around here isn't tough enough for you, maybe I should raise the bar for you and your classmates!" Machiko-sensei's eyes flickered. Fakir's fellow dancers wallowed in misery but Fakir was unscathed by the threat.

"Well then. Let's move on to…"

The words of the instructor droned on.

The bell rang. After yesterday's "talk" with Ahiru, he felt it would be a little strange to go to the café again. It didn't mean he didn't want to be friends with Gloria… He was a bit conscious of Ahiru's feelings for unexplained reasons, though he was unsure if she loved him as deeply as he loved her.

Running down the steps at a rapid speed was the small wonder, Kero again! It was a miracle that girls didn't flock to them. Perhaps it was Fakir's presence that drew the girls away. Girls often fantasized about unlocking Fakir's apparent "stone heart" from afar, but women often shied away or avoided him in person. He might have been a suave dancer but he was also a merciless fencer and knight.

Kero didn't seem to be afraid of Fakir for he jumped onto Fakir's back, an ache escaping Fakir's mouth, and wrapped his arms around his neck.

"Fakir-kun! I want to talk to you! Can we go somewhere alone?"

Fakir erected his back and threw the green-headed fool off his back.

"Sure. But _never_ do that again!" Fakir growled.

"Alright, alright!" Kero seemed to perspire!

Pigeons surfed the sky overhead as they walked to the isolation of the corner outside the library.

"So what is it you want?"

Kero's expression turned grave and his lime green eyes grew desolate. His simper transformed into a wilting grimace and silently requested, "Where is my fiancee, Fakir-kun?"

"I beg your pardon?" Fakir uttered.

"My fiancee." His eyes shut as a smile returned to his face, "Princess Tutu."

Fakir was taken aback suddenly. This cute, cheerful creature changed so quickly to a grim state, back and forth just as suddenly! How was he to answer? Was he to tell the truth?! Ahiru was a duck, what use would she be as a bride for this mysterious boy?!

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:D CLIFF HANGER OMG! Okay, R&R! My life is wasting away! 


	3. Buying Fairytales and Love!

**Kiss of an Animal Princess**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Princess Tutu!

**Author's Note:** Hello my dear readers! I'm happy that some people are reading and enjoying my story. :3 I make errors, yes, but I fix them. Anyway, about my writing style. You will notice that I don't describe certain things in detail. I write this way for a reason. That is because this is fanfiction. You know that Ahiru is a yellow duck. You know that Fakir is a smexy guy with black hair. You know! If Ahiru, Fakir and other characters were my own original ones, I would describe them like I did Kero. Yes, there are going to be OCs in here but they're not going to be Mary Sues or Gary Stus. XD And if they do have a nice personality, it will come a price, don't you worry. This story is strictly **Ahiru x Fakir.**

I am going to be gone for 1-2 days. :( But I will definitely continue to work on this fanfic!

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**CHAPTER 3:** Buying Fairytales and Love!

Kero's expression turned grave and his lime green eyes grew desolate. His simper transformed into a wilting grimace and silently requested, "Where is my fiancee, Fakir-kun?"

"I beg your pardon?" Fakir uttered.

"My fiancee." His eyes shut as a smile returned to his face, "Princess Tutu. Princess Ahiru. Ahiru-chan. All of these names are hers."

Fakir felt his stomach tighten when he heard the request.

"Are you serious? How do you know about Ahiru?"

"We're childhood friends.We've only been engaged since birth."

"What the heck are you talking about?!" Was all Fakir could say to him, clenching onto Kero's shoulders intensely.

"Ribbit!" Kero habitually croaked out of fear.

Before his eyes, a small muckgreen frog lay in his clothes instead of the crazy youth who had been there a second ago. Fakir gasped and flinched away from the critter. After this initial reaction, he twisted his head to see if anyone witnessed the phenomenon but to his relief, no one was around for blocks. He threw the pile of clothes on his shoulder and cupped the frog in his palms, throwing wild glances in every direction.

"Ahiru turned human from contact with water... Aha!" He spotted a water fountain and sprinted to it at alarming speed. He then dunked the frog into the surface. Kero battled suffocation for a good minute before Fakir realized that wasn't going to work.

"Oh, what am I going to do with you?" The frog seemed bitter after nearly drowning.

"Think, think!" Fakir paced frantically about. Fairytales, fairytales! There was one particular fairytale about a prince who was turned into a frog until... **blasphemy! **There was no way he would kiss a frog! Does Fakir look like a _princess_ to you?

Fakir lifted the frog to his face, who seemed not to deny what he thought was to come. There's no other choice.

"You're a frog, not a guy!" Fakir quickly pecked his lips on those of the frog and his tiny body illuminated. The weight on his hands became unbearable and he dropped the manifesting teenager on the ground.

"Ugh..." Kero groaned, "I guess I should thank you but..."

"Here!" Fakir stiffly shoved his clothes before him, averting his eyes to another direction as a crimson blur swept across his face.

"Thanks!" Kero sincerely grinned.

"You should be grateful that I read fairytales religiously!" Fakir grumbled.

"Oh, I'm in a fairytale in _this _fairytale? That's amazing!" The shorter boy exclaimed. Why did he speak as if he wasn't from this world?

Kero dressed in public with haste and both sat down at the edge of the water fountain and decided it was time to chat about other significant issues.

"I guess I should tell you more about myself. I am the prince of the Amphibios race in the real world. I was born with a shameful curse... I have the tendency to say the word 'ribbit,' my people are chimeras of frogs and humans you see, and if I say 'ribbit,' I'm transformed into a frog. If I stay as a frog for longer than an hour, I am stuck that way forever. The only way to return to my true form is to receive a kiss, from _anyone_. This is a grave situation, for frogs are useless, have a short lifespan not befit for a future ruler and are incapable of fighting or using magic. I have been shunned since birth by other members of royalty and my people... I've been trying to condition myself not to do such a thing but nothing works! However, if I find my true love and kiss her, I will be healed and never turn into a frog again!"

"I've read Princess Tutu's fairytale many times, or rather mummy read it to me many times. I know who you are Fakir. You are the knight that was Ahiru-chan's most powerful ally. You are also Drosselmeyer's descendant."

"How do you know that?!" gawked Fakir.

"How can nobody not know the lineage of one of the top criminals? He was arrested for kidnapping princes, noblemen, you name it, and putting them in his stories. This is his favorite tale though. The last one he wrote and never finished before his hands were sliced off by the guillotine."

Fakir had no response. His face harbored the most intense dread he's ever had.

"It all started when he put your parents in this tale. Your dad was his son. Perhaps he purposefully killed them off with ravens."

"Why... why would anyone do such a thing!" Fakir yelled.

"Calm down." Knowing arms wrapped around the quivering Fakir. His hands kneaded into his back. Kero was not someone he trusted enough to hug though, as he shrugged him off to spoil by himself.

"I won't get emotional. Drosselmeyer is a stranger. What he has done is history and over with."

"That's the spirit, Fakir-kun!" Applauded Kero, "No wonder you're such a great knight and companion for Ahiru-chan. Both of you defied the tale that wrote you and you still write it today. The librarians were in an uproar when you changed it and so many were very interested in stories like yours. I admire both of you... Especially Princess Ahiru. She is so much like me, cursed by the body of a useless animal. She is the princess I wish to make my wife." Kero spoke, blushing in a trance at the sky.

It troubled Fakir that this young man was so forward with his feelings about Ahiru, though he couldn't place why! And what did he mean by the "real world?"

"'Princess Ahiru' is no longer what she was." Fakir told him.

The green orbs that were his eyes absorbed by curiousity.

"Come again?"

"She will never be the Princess Ahiru that you are familiar with again." Fakir murmured.

"Of course she will be! If she becomes my bride! Her restoration is a harder process than mine though." Kero gently informed him

It wasn't that simple! Why was Kero speaking as if it was?!

"Do you know how Ahiru-chan became Princess Tutu?" Kero spoke again.

"She had a piece of Mytho's heart?" Fakir answered, as if this were a game of trivia.

"Exactly! That reinforced her feelings of love for Mytho-sama and as long as she had it on her. Now I do not know all the details, no one does. I do not know why she had another form as a human the lacked her grace and her style. Perhaps it was a juxtaposition of her duck form and her true form, perhaps not. What I do know is love and sacrifice is the key. I cannot understand truly. The same might happen when she comes back to our world with me and visits the Temples. Her mother and father are the governing King and Queen of the Swan Empire and it is crucial that I set this plan into action."

Fakir narrowed his eyes. What right had all of these people, who Ahiru hadn't even met or remembered or failed to mention to him while she was still Ahiru or Princess Tutu, to decide what Ahiru was to do with her life? Was it really for the best?

"My mother legally bought this fairytale so I should be able to find Ahiru-chan soon and claim her." Fakir stared at Kero with beyond mild interest. What the heck was he talking about and what rights did have to say that about Ahiru?!

"Your 'Ahiru-chan' is a duck who has no idea who you are." Fakir bluntly reminded him so he comprehend that no romance could possibly happen bewtween them. Could it?

"Of course she doesn't and I know why. Do you think I really know nothing about my fiancee?"

"No. I believe your story; most of it, anyway. Then, tell me. Tell me why Ahiru is here." Fakir requested.

"Ahiru-chan was a child prodigy in the art of ballet. Her father would always read her stories by her bedside. Stories that concerned ballet. When she was fairly young, she was obsessed with 'the Prince and the Raven' by Drosselmeyer. That story is _this_ story and _this_ world. This tale was originally a tragedy, you know? Mytho-sama was doomed to have incomplete heart, you were doomed to be slayed and Rue-sama was doomed to only receive pain and death. But Ahiru-chan fell in love with the Prince just by hearing his story and changed everything by _becoming_ a part of this story. As a result, she became a victim of Drosselmeyer's control and as a price to pay, she was reborn in this world as a duck with no memories of her short royal life whatsoever. Years passed by. The lifespan of ducks runs faster than that of humans. We are not sure at all how old Ahiru would be by now. It's several years since she has first entered the book. Her parents couldn't do anything and all fairytales were banned, except within palace walls. The entire populace was in an uproar over her."

Fakir was stunned by this surge of information.

"Even though Drosselmeyer is gone, his curse remains on Ahiru-chan. But since he is gone, anyone could buy this fairytale and enter the world. Since Ahiru-chan and I were engaged since birth and my family is also royalty, my mom claimed the book before anyone else. Only my bloodline can enter this fairytale. It would be easier for us to save Princess Ahiru if this fairytale was written and finished by Drosselmeyer but his lack of doing so enabled you, a fictional character, to choose your own fate. You have become a living breathing member of humankind similiar to Princess Tutu and I, just like Rue-sama and Mytho-sama! Consider yourself blessed! Everyone else in the story is also a living person as well! It seems that this fairytale truly is another world now."

"...What?" The ebony-head glowered at being referred to as a "fictional character" and tried to understand what the heck the man was saying.

"Any questions?"

"..."

"No? Well then, let's get started."

Kero crossed his legs and a hardcover novel mystically popped onto his lap.

"What's that?"

"_This_ fairytale."

"Huh?!" Fakir yelped.

"This contains the contents of 'The Prince and the Raven,' my friend. The lifestory of you and your friends."

"Nonsense!" Fakir yelled.

"Oh but it is the truth. Look here." Kero teased him.

"Let's see, Chapter 54. What's in here. You had a dream, did you?!"

Fakir blushed and pummeled him on the side of his head, distracted from the fact that his lifestory was in the hands of this boy.

"What! I was joking! There's no way something so graphic would be in the story. Not like you did have that type of dream!"

"Of course not!" barked Fakir.

After Kero's head twisted back to the proper position, he read the title of the chapter he desired.

"Chapter 57. Hmm... It appears Ahiru is waiting for you!"

"This is it." Kero flipped a few pages back.

"What are you doing?!" Fakir grumbled.

"I'm reading your directions from here to your house!" He clapped the book closed, pixie dust bursting from the collision of pages and swirling into the air. The book vanished and Kero hopped off, running avidly from the school yard into town yelling, "Kay Thanks Bye!"

Fakir ran after the darting boy but was no match for his perplex stamina.

"Come back, frog boy!" Fakir left the limits of the school and entered the plaza of town.

Ahiru waddled into the breakfast nook in a daze. She hovered onto the counter and glimpsed the whimsical world outside the panes of that window. She wouldn't fly to Fakir everytime she felt amiss about him being somewhere else, even if that place was near another woman. But Fakir said it himself, as long as she was near him, he didn't need anyone else. She should trust him!

Shards of glass cluttered the doorway and alerted Ahiru. The tip of an elegant shoe seemed to be the cause. This foot lowered itself but reached its limit again as the body it belonged to leaped boundlessly into the kitchen like a dancing athlete.

"A-hi-ru-channn!" Said this bewildered stranger with bright locks of green hair and beautiful eyes. Ahiru soared from her location; her instinct was to flee! Unfortunately, she bumped into an invisible force that revealed itself to be a teal cage of an exquisite pattern as complex as a finger print and the shape of a bell. Kero poked it shut and seemed to giggle, "Your suffering will soon be over, Ahiru-chan!"

"Hey, you ruined the door! I installed the screendoor a week ago!" Fakir frowned at his destroyed craftsmanship.

"Well, you'll just have to write your own destiny and build it again." Kero sneered.

It was then, Fakir lifted his head and realized that Kero imprisoned Ahiru in a cage!

"I'm sorry, Kero, but I'm going to have to put a stop to this!" Fakir mounted his hands on the tiling and performed a round-house kick straight across the prince's face.

Upon impact, Kero cried "ribbit!" at this as he smacked the wall, now an unconscious frog. After leaving a dent, he plummeted to the ceramic tile floor in his clothes. Fakir dashed to obtain a bucket, slammed it over the fat amphibian and added a heavy library book.

"You crazy prince!" Fakir shouted in outrage, lodging his heel on "Of Mice and Men."

Ahiru's cage faltered to the ground with Ahiru trapped inside. Kero's lack of consciousness seemed to disconnect his magic from levitating the cage, apparently. She seemed to be perspiring sweat in a comical way.

Fakir looked at himself and could see he was being quite ridiculous.

"Er, I think this needs some explaining." Fakir said, speculating the situation.

What was he to do? Should he concern himself about the welfare of the Frog Prince? If he left him as a frog for an hour, things could remain the same way they have always been! Ahiru wouldn't have to get married to him or anyone else! But isn't that... a little selfish?

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FIND OUT NEXT TIME ON DRAGON! BALL! Z! I mean, PRINCESS! TU! TU! 


	4. Uncertainty is Expected

**Kiss of an Animal Princess **

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Princess Tutu. I own** Kero Ouji** and** Gloria** but I'm going to own a lot of characters. Better deal with it.**  
**

**Author's Note: **I used **Microsoft Sam** to "proofread" this fanfic. XD This is hilarious.

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**Chapter 4: **Uncertainty is expected

Fakir relocated Ahiru and the unconscious frog to his study, a plush place which was a breeding ground for melodrama, dust and colors. It was still midday, noon and the sun still occupied the sky. Fakir occupied the couch near the window that formed 3 adjacent panes.

The only remaining human hasped the hook of the teal cage's door, sealing the frog inside. Ahiru was bewildered by all that took place but calmly awaited his wealth of knowledge. The pendulum of the room's Grandfather clock oscillated louder than his heartbeat.

"Ahiru, this guy is a cursed prince. He's your fiancé and he claims to have known you since childhood."

"Quack!" Ahiru released.

"I'm not sure if he speaks the truth but I don't think he was lying." His eyes seemed so pained! Should he tell her that she does have the privilege to be human at the expense of telling her she would have to leave this world in order to do so?

"Quack?" Ahiru understood that Fakir had more to say and a reason not to say it but her curiosity couldn't behave.

The clock cracked louder. If they waited a half an hour, he would rid himself of this threat to his relationship between himself and Ahiru, no matter how demented it was. Was it really fair to sacrifice the life of this young man in exchange for this?

Kero's wrinkled eyelids batted several times until he found himself imprisoned in the cage that he conjured up himself. He had no idea how long he had been unconscious, a bothersome lack of vital information.

"Ribbbbit!" He knocked the cage over, thrusting his legs hopefully. Out of cowardice, Ahiru skittered behind Fakir's back.

"He's awake." Fakir felt guilty. Two cursed animals or two free people? It was obvious what was ethical to do but it was also important to remember that that very same decision would cause Ahiru to drift away from him.

He saw the way the cage rattled pathetically and the frog prince was losing heart rapidly. 20 minutes remaining.

Fakir twisted with horror at what he was about to let occur. Imagine being shunned by your people and cursed your entire life and now to end up like this. What a miserable way to go.

"I can't watch this any longer!"

Fakir grasped the cage and freed the amphibian. He nearly crushed the frog's stomach as he pressed his thumbs to his abdomen and quickly brushed his lips against the grimy surface. He tore his face away as soon as contact was made.

"Quack!" Ahiru was shocked beyond belief.

He regretted it even more the second time! Even more so now that Ahiru witnessed what was the second kiss of his life. Wasted, on a stupid frog!

Oops, he forgot that in a matter of seconds, the dumb frog would be reduced to a dumb boy! Fakir's right hand consumed Ahiru's soft body and shielded her eyes with the other while he ran to the bathroom in the hallway.

"Ugh… You can go into my bedroom across the hall and fetch some clothes, Kero." Said Fakir, grabbing a towel.

"Yes sir!" Kero obliged, running briskly from the study to the bedroom with his hands censoring the obvious.

Fakir nearly rubbed his mouth off when he tackled them with a moist towel aggressively. Ahiru appeared in the reflection and he nearly jumped when he remembered she just saw what she did! She was only an iota of the space available in the bathroom and it was easy to forget she might be there if she made no noise.

Kero, in cotton sleeves far too long for his arms and satin pants far too long for legs, slothfully stepped near this room.

"Fa-kir-kun!" Kero's head popped out of the door.

"Gah!" His heart was not being gentle today. The frog prince didn't seem to want to steal Ahiru away however.

"Thank you for not letting me stay a frog."

"Please don't mention it. But don't even think about breaking into my home again or trying to kidnap Ahiru because I won't save you again." Fakir spoke under his nigrescent bangs as they veiled his reflection.

"Yes, Fakir-kun, sir!"

A grumble of hunger nearly developed a tremor. It was the sound of their stomaches singing in unison.

"I can't believe I'm hungry for this fairytale food." Said Kero. He was devoted to crumbling a wrap of his crepe between his thumb and the rest of his fingers.

"'Fictional' character or not, you have to eat." Fakir was still sour at being referred to as a mere pawn by someone so oblivious to the feelings of others. It isn't hard to imagine the reaction a person must have when someone underestimates them.

"True indeed! Oh, now it's ready… Itadakimasu!" Ouji-san munched merrily on a rolled crepe dressed in divine sugar powder and lingonberry sauce, "Mmm…"

"You put so much sugar on it, you're ruining it." Fakir remarked, stoically eating his leftover baked goodness from last night with a passion for the raw twist of Cinnamon and accents of butter. Just a second ago, they were at odds and now they were dining together like allies!

Ahiru eyed the pancakes longingly. Fakir caught this glimpse of unhappiness from Ahiru; call it a tingling "Ahiru" sense. He tore off a piece of his own and inserted the fluffy smooth crepe down her bill. This was their bond.

"I haven't formally introduced you, Ahiru. This is Kero..." Should he tell her about why Kero defaced their property and tried to steal her away?

"I've come to take you home where you belong, Ahiru!" Kero said directly, devouring his crepe and moving his devastation to another one.

"Quack?!" This had always been home to Ahiru.

"He has good news for you. You have every right to be human, Ahiru. As it turns out, you really are Princess Tutu." Fakir could feel himself become a little happier upon telling her.

This lunch carried on for a while and long-winded explanations were born. Even knowledge that Fakir didn't learn before escaped from Kero's mind.

"You've always been Princess Tutu, Ahiru-chan! You deserve to be a lady. Your parents missed you and your kingdom misses you! I suppose you have no recollection of how you truly disappeared?" Kero inquired. Ahiru shook her head to supply a negative response.

"You were found unconscious in Drosselmeyer's library one night with your head on your hand, your hand on a page and the words 'I exist' above the text that started to describe your entire tale. Everyone who has read your book knows exactly what has happened to you since your departure up to the most recent time the story stopped. The story stops when nothing happens, of course, and that's when people fall asleep, a day is too boring or a moment is too intimate to go on paper."

Fakir felt awkward about having his entire life in a book but the privacy of the literature kept him at peace.

"You didn't mention that before." Fakir interrupted.

"You never asked, Fakir-kun! Moving on, Drosselmeyer died with his story's plot in mind. You, Ahiru-chan, had been famous for admiring the story so much and for mourning the fate of all the characters. And now you are famous for changing this story! This inspired Drosselmeyer's spirit to come back and haunt his own creation. This book grows larger as the pages increase and only royalty has access to it. Before most of the main characters were relieved from their duties and before the book was sealed away from the public, librarians could see that the characters of the story were beginning to think for themselves as human-beings rather than following the route that was planned for them, especially you Fakir-kun. You have a talent for storywriting and some of your work is featured in the Appendix!"

Fakir blushed, feeling honored to have his work "published" when a memory striked him.

"Ah, once hooded men tried to slice off my hands!"  
"Quack!"

"Oh yeah! I read that chapter, Drosselmeyer was kind of a nut at the dinner party, ey Ahiru-chan?" Kero playfully jabbed his elbow at Ahiru, who was not fondful of being a puppet or conversing with the whimsical author.

"Focus." Fakir glowered.

"Ah, yes. As I said today, Drosselmeyer was convicted of changing reality and imprisoning people inside his stories. Mytho-sama was a real human prince from my world. He had to pick up the slack in order to keep up with royalty from other nations. Rue-sama also originated from my home world. There are many more that I cannot remember or name very well. Anyway. In a chain of events, you obtained this power as well, Fakir. It was expected of Drosselmeyer's descendant. Even within this story, they believed you could alter reality outside the story. They thought that you would commit the same crimes that Drosselmeyer has. This story was banned from the public, as I said, so only royalty could see your story. Librarians sought to stop you from using your powers for your own selfishness and added themselves to the story. But you used your powers to help for the greater good and Ahiru-chan would not have harm come to you. Mysteriously, after Mythos and Rue returned to our world, so did everyone else. Everyone else but you, Ahiru-chan."

Fakir felt as if Kero had been letting on more than he knew. He must know of his love for Princess Tutu, no! His love for Ahiru! Was he going to speak of it to Ahiru?!

Kero extended Ahiru's wings and placed his palms under them.

"If you come back to my world and marry me, there is a way for you to become the old Princess Tutu and recover these memories you don't have of your parents and of me anymore. We are fiancé and fiancée. We're lovers, Ahiru-chan! You deserve the best, Princess Ahiru!"

She barely knew this berserk gentleman and didn't desire to marry him. But this meant being human, sort of! This meant being able to dance! But... this meant leaving behind Fakir, the best friend she has ever known and the most loyal friend she will probably find. Ahiru was stuck between a rock and hard place. Fakir could understand Ahiru was doubtful. Kero was also picking up these emotions.

"Think about it, Ahiru-chan. I would like to talk to Fakir-kun outside before I leave. See you tomorrow. Probably."

They left the breakfast nook and traveled near the lake neighboring the house.

"Everyone knows about you, Fakir-kun. And everyone knows you love Ahiru-chan." a taciturn Kero murmured.

Fakir was flabbergasted; he couldn't deny his feelings for the swan princess but it felt embarassing hanging it out in the open like frocks on a clothesline.

"His and Her Highness Anatidae won't allow it. Because you are the descendant of Drosselmeyer, a convicted felon. But we all know you are a selfless person that would let go of Ahiru-chan for her happiness, right? That's the kind of person you are, right?" Kero bleakly asked.

Fakir could not bear his emotions in front of the frog prince or the readers prying his life apart. If his thoughts were written, he wouldn't need to show them. But Kero was right, he was that kind of person. He would always be a selfless knight that would make sacrifices for what he protected. Perhaps that's why he still plays his role so well and why the story is still moving.

"I'm sorry, Fakir-kun. I really like you." This line seemed hypocritical but also sincere.

"Please. Give us some time." begged Fakir.

"There's nothing you can do with a duck. But if that is what you wish, Fakir-kun."

"She's not just a duck! She's Princess Tutu! Princess Ahiru! You said it yourself." Fakir pleaded like a prepubescent boy.

"I did say it myself. Well, see you tomorrow at school! Practice your Pirouette piquées! I know I have to! All this excitement has distracted me and I was afraid you would let me stay as a frog! I want to be able to dance with Ahiru-chan someday, you know! I'm just a novice but I'm trying! Au revoir!"

Kero surprisingly darted on the dock and leaped onto the surface of the lake but landed upon it as if it were a solid street. His feet were planted gracefully in position, one tucked this way and the other in another fashion. He extended one of his feet and twirled it full circle as he leaped yet again. He repeated the process naturally as if it was his style of walking and disappeared into the fog of distance.

What awaited them tomorrow? A decision? A feeling of happiness? A departure?

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED! **

R&R please! Sorry if I bored anyone but I thought it was neat to explain some more things... :D It is going to get alot more exciting, I promise!

* * *


	5. Dirty Little Secret!

**Kiss of an Animal Princess**

**Notes:** I do not own** Princess Tutu. **You know, I got to thinking: I left out some things in explanations but I'm tired of staying on those. If you have a question, well,** you'll figure it out eventually.** XD I did think out this thoroughly.

**Also, I have developed the characters and thought of some necessary background info. Gonna hafta read!  
**

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**Chapter 5: **Dirty Little Secret!**  
**

Kero opened his eyes with his hand over his breast pocket. His family's royal crest in the pocket of his Kinkan uniform had been glimmering immensely, so much so it penetrated the fabric, until this very second when the light dispersed.

"Why, if it isn't the frog prince? Welcome to my lair. Make yourself at home. Here, have a seat. Uzura, fetch him a cup of tea." said the former author, Drosselmeyer. The seat at the other end of the long table pulled itself out.

"Tea-zura?" The pale-faced toddler manifested out of the shadows. Her little finger curled around the handle of a tea cup and the other hand furled about the handle of a tea pot. Her body was consumed in the frills and pouffes of a black Lolita dress and a maid headdress on her head.

Drosselmeyer idly rocked in a chair of the same nature. Darkness shrouded the ambiance of their dining area. It was the same long table that Drosselmeyer had invited Ahiru to seat herself in.

"My family is the owner of this creation now. Therefore, should I want access back to your library and my world, you must grant it to me." Kero ordered, flatly patting his naked hands on the table around a soup bowl that had been there long before he came.

"You bought a license so that your family's seal has the magic to get into this story? My, are you a foolish boy! You should know that since my story is finished here, I have no control over whatever happens to it now. But there is complete and utter closure for all of my characters."

"Your story is far from over, Drosselmeyer-san. Princess Tutu is a character that originally never was your own." Kero whipped out his magical copy of the book.

Drosselmeyer snagged a monicle from the privacy of his jacket and adjusted it in front of his right eye socket.

The words grew into sentences that ran across the page, only to pause several times to wait for an action of any of the characters.

"The book is corresponding to the 24-hour basis of our everyday life. It waits for any of these remaining characters, Ahiru and Fakir, to do something and writes it down. Doesn't it seem as if it is looking to do more?"

"Oh no. It's not supposed to continue. My story, my beautiful story!" Drosselmeyer yelled dismally.

"Do not be sad-zura! There is nothing either one of us can do."

"I can move to any setting in this story but I can't leave the book. What does this mean?! I can't return to reality with Ahiru-chan?!" Kero questioned.

"You should ask the descendant of the Oak Tree over here." Drosselmeyer pointing towards Uzuru with indication.

"Oak Tree-zura?"

"How can that small child help me with my plight?"

"Uzura is made of the ashes of the great Oak Tree of Kinkan town. There for, she is the closest thing to God of my book and controls my spirit even now. I'm very glad she isn't a mean-spirited owner."

Kero cringed. He hated the thought of destiny controlling him like it did everyone written in this book. He embraced free will openly! Princess Ahiru didn't belong here in this tragic world!

He kneeled down humbly before Uzura, a hand lightly on his chest and another extended towards the child.

"Please help me, Uzura-sama!"

Drosselmeyer muffled a hysterical laugh until he combusted of laughter.

"That sounds very strange of someone to say! Ho ha ha! Very rich!"

Kero didn't fancy being teased but his behavior was always tame.

"Uzura would help you. But Uzura cannot. Uzura has no more power to help you-zura. Only Fakir can help you."

"What should I ask of him?"

"Ask him to write in the book-zura anything like 'Ahiru-sama and Kero-sama returned home'-zura. He has power-zura just like Drosselmeyer-zura does. Someday, you shall find out why-zura." Uzura simply grinned.

"But this isn't a real copy of the book, this is just a symbolic representat--"  
"It's a book now. Please do not try to philosophize what is real and what isn't." Drosselmeyer interrupted.

"Fakir… Do you think he will comply?" Kero wondered.

"If he wishes for Princess Ahiru's happiness and freedom, then he must. I regret trapping so many people in my stories but Fakir definitely can undo my wrongs." Drosselmeyer told him.

Ahiru left no vacancy for happiness in her heart tonight. She tucked her wings in the very pillow that she and Fakir placed their heads on amidst the metamorphism of twilight every night. The bedroom has been empty for Fakir left to dress in his dancing attire.

Why did rays of hope come at a price? Why did she hope for something that would devastate the person who gave her hope? Fakir was so faithful to her as a friend and she could not ask for more.

_"As long as you and I are together, I don't need anyone else by my side."_

That was the most touching art for the ears that anyone had ever communicated to her. This companionship was priceless! What was she thinking when she thought for a second she could abandon it for the chance to be herself again! Even if that was Ahiru. Even if that was Princess Tutu.

"Who does that frog prince think he is? He has the gall to say to practice my pirouette piquées when I'm already an expert." He knew he was more concerned about the smaller details to distract himself with the issue at hand: Ahiru's possible departure.

Fakir entered the bedroom clad in his ebony leotard, suited for males of course. It never left anyone questioning his masculinity. Ahiru always thought that a fine man was indeed fine but one who knew how to dance and how to dance as well as Prince Mytho and Fakir was in a new league of charisma.

He reenacted the moves that Kero did as he left the scene this afternoon. His pirouette piquées were much more refined and swift than that of the legs that obeyed Kero's jubilant and carefree nature. He pointed his foot and spun it about, floating above ground for a step and landed, only to swing the same foot in this incessant action again. When he reached the end of the room, indicated by the bed, he revolved with a normal pirouette and faced the other way.

Ahiru absorbed this elegance. Could she possibly still do things like this? Yes, she was a duck but she had been able to dance before, even if her body was not suited to twist and turn in the ways a human's arms and legs could. She hadn't tried dancing in a long while but she hadn't forgotten what the steps felt like by the point of her own feet or the thrill of dancing with partners.

Ahiru gathered her webbed feet in formation at the end of the pillow to resemble Fakir's.

Unknown to Fakir, who was not conscious of Ahiru's presence and only aware the fresh smile of his competitor that angered his mind, his moves were being mimicked.

He repeated this strange dancing walk of the pirouette piquées. Ahiru found herself in a challenging position to follow this choreography.

The edges of her outer webbed foot knocked the glass encased around a candle wick an insignificant nudge out of place. This aroused Fakir's attention as he whipped his head sharply back towards the stumbling duck.

"Ahiru! You have to be careful dancing around like that!" Said Fakir, scurrying over to Ahiru, who landed on the feathers of her chin.

Kinkan Academy waited for no one in the morning. The courtyard buzzed with bright dancers, for whom it was second nature to rise at the crack of dawn.

Fakir's early return to the library was the ultimate test of upper body strength. He walked quite a ways from his obscured home in the forest setting to the Academy and complained of nothing. On the way there, he encountered Gloria yet again.

A lethargic yawn blockaded by a polite hand was his unofficial greeting until she was alerted of his presence, indicated by the sound of plummeting books in a chair. Fakir, too, pulled a chair and abandoned posture and etiquette when he dropped into it with an arm cast over his face from the gleaming sun.

Gloria's cheeks flushed at the pose he was selling her eyes for free; his body climbed out of the uniform jacket to expose his undershirt, which in turn painted hints of lean muscles rippling about the abdomen.

"It's so hot and bright this morning. Forgive me, I had to rest for but a second." Fakir regained his composure.

"Not at all! Heh heh hehheh…" Gloria nervously chattered. Frizz inhabited her hair this morning for it was a little bit earlier than opening time for this Café. Various cats mewed in the background.

Fakir jolted out of his chair, sliding it beneath the shelter of the table, and diligently lifted his load of books up.

"Thanks for the rest. I'll see you later!" Fakir left without further notice to the woman.

"Ah! Bye, Fakir!" Boy, was she hopeless.

The bell met the hour again, mechanical dancers coming out of their homes in the bell tower.

Fakir was off to his Morning dance classes, darting up stairs, through corridors, into a locker room to change and jostling by students walking too slow for him.

He gasped when he opened the door; women were lined against the wall opposite to a line of men. Usually male dancers were in separate classes from women but his confusion would settle when Machiko-sensei would speak, though under normal conditions, she was not his dance instructor.

"Today we shall be having a boys and girls pair off to practice dancing various styles together." Machiko-sensei said.

"I'm so excited!" Beamed Kero, with no regard for his classmates or his instructor. His hands pumped into fists that waved under his chin. Fakir glared at this tenderfoot.

"Alright, it seems to be about time for class to start. Pair up!"

Kero was the first member of the male side to effortlessly talk to a girl. He flew through the air with a kick and landed in front of Lilie, offering his hand.

"Would you care to dance with me, madam? I am new around here and I have never danced with a partner before!"

"How cute! Certainly!" The blonde airhead accepted. Many moans of defeat followed. Many girls suffered from disappointment now that one very popular choice was taken off the shelf so quickly.

Fakir nonchalantly walked over to her best friend, Pique, who was pulsating red at such close proximity to her crush.

"You are a good dancer and I wouldn't mind being partners with you." Blurted Fakir, not even having the respect to look her in the eye. Still, it drove girls crazy! So many of the girls wanted Fakir to be rude to _them!_

"H-h-h-h-hai!" Pique falsely smiled.

Everyone eventually paired up. They were assigned to practice going from one side of the large studio to the other. The sounds of toil and physical exertion became routine!

Fakir dipped his hand around Pique's torso as did Kero around Lilie's, both of them throwing their partners in opposite direction onto their hand. Fakir couldn't stop himself from glaring. Boy, was this Prince a fast learner! Pique was in absolute heaven but Lilie was just herself, remarking "How cute" very often!

"You're so skilled for a beginner, Ouji-san!" Lilie mocked a doll as Kero grasped one of her hands and twirled her.

Fakir grunted.

He grunted the very same way when he left school. This time he would visit Gloria and pay his respects to her for this morning. The annoyance would ruin his plans, however.

"Fa-kir-kun! Where are you going!" His shoulder brushed against Fakir's rudely. If that didn't annoy Fakir, the index finger inserted into the cheek of his jaw would.

"Would you stop touching me!" Fakir bitterly snarled.

"You're so cold, Fakir-kun! I was just going to say what a great dancer you were this morning!"

"Spare me."

Without Fakir's consent, it seemed the strange prince would follow him to the center of the earth. Fortunately, he reached his destination.

"Gloria!" Fakir's anger washed away.

"Good afternoon, Fak--"

A gust swirled small fall leaves by. Gloria and Kero made eye contact and seemed frozen. Their eyes reflected each other for what seemed like forever. Fakir tossed his head back and forth between the two.

"What are you doing he--" Kero murmured but Gloria took off, swerving her hips around the tables that made themselves an obstacle course, "Hey, come back!"

Kero had no reason to hide his power as a license owner. He tapped his breast pocket and he teleported right behind Gloria's current trail and pulled her by the wrist back towards him. He ended kneeling to catch the falling girl. Her back landed on his firmly planted leg, her eyes quivered from the spoils of fear and her wrist was still held by his faithful hand, which resembled a common stance shared by partners during a Pas de deux.

"Gloria, Princess of the Mermaid Kingdom, what are you doing in this tale of Drosselmeyer's with legs and the ignorance of your true origin?" Kero solemnly asked.

Fakir's irises widened as did Gloria's.

"What an interesting turn of events. Both of Princess Ahiru and Princess Gloria have been found in this tale now. I'm sure King and Queen Anatidae and their court will be pleased when they learn this by reading their own copies of the book. Unfortunately for the Mermaid kingdom, they live in the water and cannot read. This gives the Swan kingdom a clear advantage over the Mermaids. There has been a long rivalry between the Swan Kingdom and the Mermaid kingdom for the land of Azure, after all. Whatever shall we do?" Said an opulent voice of old within dark castle walls.

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R&R please!!! Be glad that I actually put effort into thinking about a really cool concept for this fanfic. :D Also, I must remind you that Kero and Gloria are based off real fairytales. 

Also, I thought about it and I'm going to be holding my own **contest **kind of thing for an element in the story. It's very easy:

Choose a letter: **A, B or C.**

I will later explain what it shall mean but for now, just choose a letter. TATA!


	6. The Little Mermaid, part 1

**Kiss of an Animal Princess **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Princess Tutu!

**Notes:** I am SO sorry about not updating as frequently as I usually do! I've actually decided how I wanted the story to go. Since there's only been review with a letter for the failed little thing I tried to do, I've decided to throw that out the window too. The letters were going to decide where I wanted to take the plot but that helped me narrow down what I wanted to happen in the first place. Sorry but this chapter will be able Kero's side of the Mermaid situation.

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**Chapter 6: **The Little Mermaid** part 1**

** A while ago...**

Edel cranked her musical box incessantly until an intrigued customer stopped by. She popped out the goods and merchandise for her to behold. Jewelry and treasure of every kind.

"I would like to purchase this, please." A young lady bearing similarity in appearance to Gloria modestly vouched. In her hand rest a bright green headband.

**Currently...**

Fakir had only seen their sudden maneuvers, the use of Kero's license, but **heard nothin from afar. **The sight alone aroused his surprise. He hadn't heard a word of what was spoken for Kero had whispered to the fallen girl.

Fakir ran swiftly, evading the corners of chairs.

"What is this about?!" Fakir asked.

Gloria sweat profusely under the pressure of his voice; she assumed Fakir knew everything now! However, Kero was the wiser, for Fakir's question indicated that he didn't know too much. He was willing to take a risk and assume so.

Since Fakir towered above them and could only see behind Kero's bright green hair, Kero silently but orally formed the words "You know nothing. Slap me. Be angry. Then go back." in a voice smaller than an atom.

The former mermaid participated in this act. She narrowed her eyes and slapped Kero powerfully, a throbbing handprint marking his poor face. This slap was so rich in power that it delivered the frog prince to the side, leaving her no body parts to land on so as a result, she rolled like a barrel away from them.

"I'm sorry! I just thought you were beautiful! You don't have to run away if you don't want to go out on a date!" said Kero, whose acting was not half bad.

Gloria's face flooded with blood at the false compliment but due to other experiences, the words didn't seem far from true.

"Y-you don't have to be so forward, sir. Tell…Tell your rude friend to back off, Fakir. Now if you excuse me, gentlemen, I have a café to help run." She blatantly lied but Fakir thought of her stuttering as a result of sheer nervousness.

"He's not my friend! Didn't you see him teleport from place to place?! Gloria!" was all Fakir could say to Gloria's back but she didn't respond. He denied any responsibility the boy's actions might have! But it did him no good.

"Gloria's mad at me because _you_ pursued her. And she didn't even see you… do that… Ideal." Fakir cynically.

"People of this story, besides important main characters like you and Ahiru-chan, can't see magical things like that!" Kero lied, though he was far better at it than Gloria.

"Now Gloria must think I'm delusional." Fakir complained.

Kero grinned foolishly. He would not tell Fakir about Gloria's true identity now.

"Hey, stop smiling. Just because all the girls in our class eat you up doesn't mean a girl like Gloria would."

That statement wounded his smile into a painful one.

It was still afternoon when Fakir arrived at his home. Ahiru skittered to the bedroom door, anticipating her knight. She was curious as to why Fakir lost interest in his studies and embraced dancing more so. Of course, he had to be distracted by the potential calamity that was to ensue should she choose to leave him and this storybook world.

Surely enough, Fakir snapped the door open and nearly dragged his feet to his bedroom, crashing his body against the soft bedspread. Ahiru broadened her wings and flapped in a bumbling, ugly fashion to find herself near Fakir's face. Unfortunately, Fakir was immersed in sleep already.

Ahiru could not turn away from what she thought was a gorgeous, lean face. His features, such as the bone structure and quality of skin, were softer than she had imagined when they first interacted during the time Mytho had an empty heart. Her prying crystal blue eyes roamed his face and always returned to his slightly parted lips. It was then she laid her head upon his own and shared his slumber.

Dreams…

"The secret to Ahiru returning to her true form lies in the words you fear to say the most."

"I know that!" Fakir yelled.

He stood in this abyss of shadows not as a student of Kinkan Academy or a dancer but as a knight. His dusky cloak smothered his neck and broad shoulders and dressed his back. A sword sat in a sheathe hugging his torso. His feet sat in his leather boots of old and his dismally coloured ensemble left his body to the imagination.

The horror of silence escaped his ears when another voice beckoned him.

"Fakir!" Ahiru gleefully called.

He turned about-face to find an environment of an Eden, fit for a utopia, before him. Sporadic amounts of morning glories, chrysanthemums and various flowers grew together, side by side, even if the conditions were not ideal for their growth. Grape vines manipulated erected fencing and an amazing sky blanketed the land as blue and as clear as Ahiru's eyes.

Which innocently stared at him at this moment. Ahiru's salmon-pink hair cascaded down her back, no braid in sight! The bonds of her braid blessed the follicles to have many stunning waves. She adorned a sundress as white as an angel's wings, very simple design with intricate details such as heavenly sash and silver lace in the areas of the neck, wrists and ankles. Ahiru's naked feet touched the earth and a shoe of any sort would have interrupted nature's divine painting.

Ahiru smiled serenely at him privately for him and warmth guided him to her.

What was he doing in such a fine place in this drab renaissance costume?

Contiguity formed when he pinned the petite girl abrasively to the grass. It was far too overwhelming to _not_ touch her. She never protested. However, her eyes pried into his soul honestly.

His lips peppered her neck with kisses and caressed her collar bone. Fakir honored romance more than most hormone-driven men his age. Perhaps his endearment to Ahiru established this routine of foreplay that drives many women wild. What a gentleman.

"Fakir-kun!" said a male voice.

Fakir threw a glance at the direction he had originated from, the abyss that consumed distance and space. Fakir returned his gaze over to the Ahiru of his dreams when he learned that she vanished as well as the paradise he embarked.

"I knew you would have a stimulating dream! Finally!" Kero said, thinking nothing of the privacy he was invading.

Fakir boiled with rage and humiliation.

"What are you doing here?!" Fakir growled. He lifted himself from his awkward position.

The frog prince had his own set of threads as well. A forest green muffler guarded his neck. Celestial robes hugged his upper body. They were born from print that replicated the fabric of the universe, stars embedded cleverly with the use of plotted strands of silver thread. Faintly limegreen layer of robes traveled down his chest, beneath the layer of stars. His robes had more of an Asian flair to it. A diminutive soft pink lotus crowned his head.

Fakir forgot his troubles and brutally laughed at the crown.

"H-hey! Don't laugh! The Lotus is my kingdom's flower!" Kero pouted. Usually men would think that dancing in a leotard was worse than donning such a cute crown but Fakir begged to differ.

"Ha ha… So. What _are_ you doing here?" Fakir clutched his gut.

"I'm here to save your bed sheets!"

Fakir steamed, willing to punch a block off his head. In fact, he threw one straight at the side of Kero's head or rather, he was in the process of doing so.

"Rib--!"  
Fakir's fist became an open palm and stopped him before he had to waste another kiss.

"You better not turn into a frog now!" Fakir removed his hand, "Speak!"

"Phew… well, because this was such an intimate dream, there's no way it will get written into any of the copies around! I can tell you anything now and no one would know but you and I."

"So what have got to tell me?"

"Ahiru-chan was my childhood friend."

"We established that."

"Well, we would used to exchange visits between our kingdoms in order to get to know each other. The marriage was arranged after all. I don't know about love, but it was very fun to play with Ahiru-chan. I used to be horrible at dancing and I had no formal training, though I could easily get it. But… It would have been embarrassing to learn, practice and use ballet in front of my people. The people of my culture are more into traditional ceremonies and traditional dancing to that annoying Mandolin music. I hate that stuff! And because of my tastes and my condition, they have no respect for me! They throw rocks at me if they so much as see me on the street! I do have loyal guards that I have befriended though… It's ironic how frogs are sacred in my kingdom and yet, being cursed to become a frog is an injustice. Anyhow… She's been a duck for several years. When I was just a young boy of about 10 years old, I had only found out about Ahiru-chan's tragedy when I visited, expecting to see her…"

The magical surface of water rippled perpetually as schools of incandescent angelfish swarmed the river. For every black scale there would be on a normal angelfish was a luminous scale on this spectacular species. The ponds and rivers lighted the path for many a lost wanderer. What had these fish been doing here in a river instead of the ocean? This is a mythical world, no one should question the mechanics! There are no oceans in this land! There are ponds, lakes, streams, rivers, seas but not one colossal ocean on this floating isle. The bodies of water at night simulated indoor pools of the 20th century.

"Okaa-san." A prepubescent version of Kero crouched on his ankles near the edge of the basin. The steady waves of water danced across his face. The very lotus on his head was a part of his history as well, sitting on his head as a little boy and as the young man he was today.

A real lotus as white as a dove sat atop the height of an opulent women. Her hair fell to her back, no split ends, and a headdress assembled some of her hair into a ribbon. Her posture was well practiced and gave prima donnas a run for their money. Her clothes were solid cobalt blue and lime green layers beneath, the same style Kero had. Her hair and eye colors were no different from Kero's. She was not stoic for anyone could read the concern on her face.

"Kero."

"Rib--" He smacked his own mouth shut, folding one hand over the other. Tears trickled down his cheeks and parted ways at his arms. His eyes shimmered with emotion and the reflection of the water.

Queen Anura threw her arms around him and cosseted his head on her bosom. He jerked away like a rebellious boy but ended up diving headfirst into the throes of the river!

"Kero!" His mother failed to run at the speed the river sent him away.

"Okaa-san!" The water seemed to jostle him down stream with great rapacity. The boy urgently gasped for breath and cursed his lack of power to control his destination or to ensure his safety. Rapids him tossed him hectically and treated him no better than pedestrians would on a overcrowded street in suburbia.

He was in peril for hour until he arrived into what seemed to be a land engulfed by water. This was Ahiru's homeland, not Kero's. All this was foreign to him! Hands pried his stomach and clutched onto his small torso. A gentle hand also saved the lotus from brutality. He soon felt all his consciousness slip away from him.

The inclination of the back of a mermaid created a silhouette before both the crescent moon and the full moon. Keep in mind, this is information the frog prince had not witnessed. Her flippers splashed majestically below him as she lifted him up, as if she was a groom and Kero was a bride, onto a large stone lodged in the center of the river.

Now, the mermaid huffed air from her mouth to his, ventilated her breath to his lungs and what occurred was resuscitation. She pumped his chest with her own hands and returned to deliver him air when he awoke to find a mysterious mermaid there. He coughed and hacked, sitting up instantly.

The mermaid had a face as young as his but he found it far more attractive. Fins rest on ears had on human anatomy with teal veins and translucent skin wedged between them. Her cerulean eyes pierced his own and did not waver from watching his illuminated green eyes. Chestnut strands of hair crowned her mirthful face and radiated with the warmth of the sun, even at darkness of night!

"Thank you for… saving me from…" Kero began.

"Drowning."

"Drowning." He repeated after her, "How do you know how to do that?"

"Oh, it's a helpful skill to learn if people get lost around here. Mermaids don't take kindly to strangers on their property but we're not cold-hearted enough to let people die if they do trespass." She smiled weakly.

He had never met a mermaid before and only heard of such things in Peter Pan.

"What are you doing here late at night?" Asked Kero.  
"What are _you _doing here at night?" She recycled the question. After a pause, she decided to answer since Kero asked first.

"I hate living amongst Mermaids though. That's why I'm leaving." The painful smile lived, "What about you?"

"I fell in here by accident…"

"That's okay! There's a nice, big, calm lake near by here that I can swim you to, if you don't mind. It's a bit dangerous here. Even I can't swim that well upstream."

"Thank you. I'm fine with that."

"Great! Oh, here's your lotus, it's quite a pretty flower. You have such a tiny one. Never lose it again!" She inserted the flower into his palm and clamped the fingers sealed with her own soft hands. In the process, she ended up penetrating his eyes again and told him, "My, you have pretty eyes. Very green."

"Thanks!" His cheeks flushed. Shouldn't the compliments be the other way around?

"Yoshhh, let's do this!" The mysterious mermaid clenched her fists.

She jerked Kero's free hand with no warning and they both dived into the transparent hodgepodge of bubbles and the radiance of the sublime angelfish, which scattered away by detection. Kero would not lose this lotus, he clenched firmly. His wrist slipped further back and now, their bonded hands were the only link that kept them drifting in unison.

A waterfall dropped the river ahead of them, granted it was small.

"Oh no!" Exclaimed Kero.

"Oh yes!" The mermaid jubilantly cried.

She ended up spiraling once, still grasping Kero's hand and squeezing it as securely as possible. They landed painfully into the shallow water of the said lake and all the woodland creatures witnessed was a combustion of astray liquid. Kero could feel his stomach turn inside out.

"That was… fun!" She proclaimed.

"For you. My stomach…" Groaned the prince, discarding water which had crawled in the wrong interal places

"It's only been less than an hour and I feel like I know you so much! I've never spoken to a human before. I've spoken to other mermaids and ghosts, sure, but never a human!"

"I'm not a human! I'm an Amphibion." Kero folded his arms, the sleeves of his ceremonial robe doused entirely and hugging his warm flesh.

Her face juxtaposed panick and bliss into a bittersweet smile.

"No wonder you have such bright green hair. And even brighter green eyes. I love them!"

Kero appreciated the compliment and his cheeks reflected that gratitude. But his hair color and eyes were a common dominant gene in every Amphibion. They were not unique to him.

This woman was the exact opposite of his fiancee. She could not dance, obviously due to the lack of legs. She did not embrace freewill like Ahiru had. He would later learn that she was a pushover that let destiny step all over her. She was a pretty mythical creature and that was all. A mysterious wonder whose pleasure expires after it's enigmatic secrets are learned.

The mermaid froze tensely. She put a fin to the water and spewed a renascent gasp. She plucked her head from the placid waves and introduced him to her forlorn eyes.

"Good bye, Kero. Just follow this forest by the river and you'll be back towards the Swan Kingdom's Capitol in no time. There's no other place you would head, after all."

Kero noticed that more waterfalls flowed southbound from their position and room for water expanded prodigiously.

"Just like that? Where are you going?!" He asked after speculating their circumstances.

She meant to depart before he argued but she decided to leave the young boy with a present. The little mermaid swerved around him like an apprehending shark but closed the radius between him and her, coiling him in the lower half of her body by the manner of hazardous snakes. As she squeezed his body tighter, she planted an innocent brush of the lips which ignited his interest. Remember, these are 10-year old children.

She removed her lips and delicately stared at him.

"That's the first time I ever did that to anyone. My friends always joked how they would be the first to kiss somebody. If you ask me, it wasn't that great!"

Kero couldn't disagree more.

"Good bye."

She released him and threw herself like a whale onto the pallet of the lake, submerging into the water and fleeing.

With no means to stop her, Kero dragged his body to the edge of the lake and climbed out, cradling his precious lotus. The water accumulating in his clothes weighed an extra burden on his now lethargic, comtemplative body. He staggered back where his mother awaited him in a trance. Was he to never to see that girl again?

"I've never felt like this about any girl before." He murmured to himself. His shoes, wooden sandles on his cotton socks, definitely lost themselves while waging war with the rapids.

He turned to the water and gandered at his dancing counterpart in the water.

"Okaa-san said if I get a kiss from my true love, my curse will be gone."

He should have faith in that kiss. He shouldn't doubt himself now. His heart wouldn't stop searching for closure, however.

"Rib-bit..." Whispered the eager boy, pending to find his happiness.

Before his eyes, he minimized to the size of a frog. No! This could not be right!

She wasn't his true love. Even a girl as wonderful as that mermaid wasn't his true love!

The frog continued to retreat back to his mother, biting a root of his lotus to bring it along. Before the hour was over, his mom gladly remedied his status and greeted the sobbing boy with problems she wouldn't ask him if he did not mean to tell her.

Years passed by. Kero found out about the disappearance of the Mermaid Kingdom's princess and connected two and two together. He commited himself to research in any knowledge of fairytales, for both Gloria and Ahiru.

"What a story that was." Fakir said.

"Well, my hour is almost up. You're almost awake! Perhaps Gloria will tell you her side of the story in her own way. Things are going to be out of hand though. This book is in the hands of royalty of the Swan Kingdom, which is feuding with the Mermaid Kingdom over the land of Azure as we speak."

"What the heck..." Fakir's mind would need more time to register this information.

"Gloria, for someone I knew for barely an hour, she feels important to me. Maybe she'll be able to tell you her story in her own way without revealing to the readers what is really going on. I would like to know myself but I don't think I'll get the chance now. See you in about an hour or two! Ta ta!" said Kero. White plagued the scenery and devoured the prince.

"Wait, I want to know more!" Fakir desperately plead.

"Gloria is the princess of the Mermaid Kingdom and Ahiru is the princess of the Swan Kingdom. I wonder if that means they were destined to fight since birth."

Sweet girls like Gloria and Ahiru destined to fight? It didn't seem so at all! He awoke in his own room next to the cursed Ahiru to his dismay.

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Sorry, VERY SORRY, for this and the next chapter being consumed by OC-ness. Don't worry, it will make you appreciate the fanfic more! I swear! R&R! 


	7. The Little Mermaid, part 2

** Kiss of an Animal Princess**

**BIG NOTE: I changed the other chapters a bit. Reason why is because I hadn't seem some episodes of Princess Tutu because they weren't on Youtube back in the day(yeah I'm horrible) but I recently saw them and wow, had to fix stuff. **

**Chapter 3... Might be something you want to check out again.**

**Note: **Kero speaks Japanenglish while Fakir, Gloria and Ahiru will speak normal English. Please consider the language of everyone in general Japanese in mind. :O

**Picture of Fakir and Duck Ahiru is my icon. **Check out my profile to see it. I'm gonna do some review shoutouts next chapter. :D I promise!

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**Chapter 7: **The Little Mermaid, part 2

"How dare you even plan to form an alliance with the Mermaids!" the harsh tone of a brutal man shouted.

"What is wrong with that? They are good spirits at heart! It doesn't mean we think less of Swan kind!" Queen Anura, the queen of the Amphibios and their Kero's mother, argued. Her headdress suspended tassels and some fine pieces of gold, which emitted a ringing chime as soft-spoken as the wind.

The sound of a hand slapping items off a desk followed. The rush of bare feet hustling nearby belonged to Kero. His head protruded the open door, a huge wooden gateway to his future.

"Why, if it isn't my daughter's fiance. Come here, son-in-law." Darkness lurked in voice. Kero dreaded his advance towards Kind Anatidae. The young boy naively stepped foot into a trap.

The adult slapped a palm onto his forehead, combing his fingers through the bangs weaved there.

"What are you doing to my son!" Queen Anura lifted her heavy layers to hurry to her son.

"For disobeying me, your son must pay the expense."

"What's going on okaa-san?" The young boy asked, unable to budge from the man's grip.

He forced his hand once onto the young boy's forehead and removed it to unveil an elegant insignia branded in the center of Kero's temples, the only source of light in this dark room, and his eyes lost their light, as he landed into his mother's unprepared arms. The insignia disappeared.

"Kero! Kero!" She vigorously shook him for sign of life but she received none. She lifted her gaze and glowered at the criminal.

"Relax. He's only unconscious."

She viciously snapped "What did you do _to my son!_"

"I did not kill him."

"_Liar!_"

"I cursed him!"

"_How dare you!_"

"He will gain the custom of saying the _ugly_ word 'ribbit' and should he finish saying this word, he will become an _ugly_ frog. The only way to reverse this curse is by getting a kiss from anyone, even an _ugly_ person like you. The only to get rid of the curse forever is to receive a kiss from his true love but what are the chances an _ugly_ prince like him will ever do such a thing? Not even my daughter loves him truly! Romanticly! Remember! Should he stay an _ugly_ frog for 3600 seconds or 60 minutes or an hour, he will be a frog! _Forever! _Such is a curse suited for _disgusting _people like you."

"You've gone too far!" The queen's eyes bordered on tears but she would not let the enemy see this, "Guards! Guards! Arrest him!"

Robe-clad followers burst into the room at her command with sharpened spears in hand. They made work of the room's furniture in the act of seizing the insane king, who failed to escape.

"Hahahaha!" Blood-curdling laughter came from his mouth as the guards carried him away to the dungeon in tow.

Kero isolated himself in the poster bed in his chamber that night. All he could remember was his Father-in-law's horrid face. The curtains surrounding his bed were as white as the feathers that Princess Tutu dressed her hair in. He loved his fiancée, regardless of how her father had treated him. Whether it was true love or sibling love, he couldn't determine. He was far too young for these problems!

The door creaked. He shivered with anticipation that it might be King Anatidae again!

"Kero." said the voice of his mother, which was as soft as velvet to his ears.

His muscles relaxed and he scrambled to the footing of his bed, parting the curtains.

"Maybe I should cut off all relations with the Swan kingdom after all." Queen Anura whispered to herself as she walked diligently towards her son and preciously hugged his body to her bosom.

"No! Don't do that, okaa-san! You shouldn't let that crazy guy change your mind about them. They're nice people! Queen Anatidae is really nice!"

Kero seemed not to be cursed at all. Perhaps it was a lie? Queen Anura couldn't cease to smile.

"Especially Princess Ahir-ibbit!"

Her eyes dilated as he was nothing but a frog. He was more confused than she was, for he had heard no explanation of such a curse.

"Kero! No, no… It _is _true…" She scooped him up to her bosom.

Fakir was flabbergasted in his bed. Cold sweat ran down his forehead. He learned that Gloria was truly a Mermaid princess, all along! What a strange epiphany!

He lifted Ahiru's head off of his own and gently placed her on the sheets, making sure not to wake her. The aroma of butter and salt and breakfast wafted through the air. Hark! The hiss of a frying pan over the stove disturbed the morning's silence.

He felt ashamed for not bothering to bathe that night but he would do so in a minute, after figuring out who trespassed inside his abode. He swiftly stepped down the stairwell in his sock-clad feet and entered the breakfast nook.

At the stove, Kero was preparing an omelet. Who else could teleport so fast between places?

"How… did you get here so fast?!"

"My license of course!"

"How come you didn't use that thing when you were coming to take Ahiru away in the first place?"

It was a stupid question for Fakir could tell that Kero was no good at conducting crime.

"Oh! I forgot all about having it back then! I was so excited! I only remembered I could use it when I went to speak to Drosselmeyer-san and Uzura-chan!"

"Uzura?! Drosselmeyer?! Where on earth did you see them?!"

Fakir was supremely shocked to hear that Kero could talk to his horrible ascendant and the former resident of his home.

"I can't really say where exactly…"

"I don't know how in Kinkan you were able to talk to Drosselmeyer and I won't even ask. I was wondering where she went all this time!" Fakir stated, "Is she alright?"

After Mytho and Rue thanked Ahiru for her sacrifices and determined the town's true creative source in Kinkan's clock tower, Uzura disappeared without a trace.

"She is doing fine! She told me how to get back to my world." Kero said, lifting the skillet and the premature omelet a skip into the air.

"I see."

"Fakir. There's something I didn't tell you."

"What now?"

"Although it is Ahiru's choice to leave the fairytale or not, you ultimately decide whether we leave or not."

"I beg your pardon?"

"You are the only one with enough willpower to change fairytales. Even with my license over this book, I cannot get myself out of it."

"So how do I go about this?" Fakir inquired.

Kero obtained a spatula and pointed at it to trigger it and the pan on "autopilot." The spatula obeyed and continued to flip the omelet despite the absense of Kero's hands. Fakir was amazed by this but decided to not make it a big deal if Kero didn't.

"While that cooks, take a look at this."

He magically restored the book before him, continuing to write itself.

"As I said, my family purchased the license for this book initially after Ahiru-chan entered. The book automatically transforms what people write on the page. It used to allow a select few to enter, 'guinea pigs' that the nobles didn't mind losing, but before everyone grasped the concept of entering the story, it began to block access to everyone except for people who bought the copyright. This filter started after you almost got your hands cut off and ended only recently, a couple days ago. Only people with the license over the book can people enter and I currently have the only one."

"But even I can't alter the course of this book. No one can. But Uzura, and now I, believe that you can. Other people have tried but their words are ignored; they disappear and the story goes on without any kind of response to it. I'm not completely sure that you'll be able to do something but we have to try…"

"But let's try tonight!"

Fakir did not argue. He would do this for Ahiru without question. Sadly.

"I have to talk to Gloria myself before then." Kero optimistically applied himself.

"About Gloria. Are you sure she's a mermaid princess? It would not surprise me. I've seen Mytho turn into an anthromorphic crow and a duck turn into a swan. But that just doesn't seem like her. She seems so normal and carefree, like someone who doesn't have anything to do with 'real world' you speak about. Why should she be here? What connection does she have to Drosselmeyer?"

"I don't know. She's a mermaid and mermaids can't read and absolutely do not dwell with humans. It should be impossible for someone like her to meet Drosselmeyer, let alone see him. The first time we met, I felt like she should have had no respect for me but she did. She was different than the stereotype of a normal mermaid. She surprised me. I want to find out how she got here." Kero passionately explained.

Kero turned the dial to 0 and moved the pan to another heat breeding spot. The spatula fell asleep beneath the prepared omelet. He ravaged through the cupboards, never once asking permission from the host of the home.

"Here, enjoy some egg!" He jubilantly offered Fakir, chopping the egg in half and sliding the puff of egg onto another plate.

"It's impolite to go through someone's home without permission, you know." said Fakir but he did deny the egg, poking his fork at the yellow puff, "I wonder if Ahiru would consider this cannibalism…"

"Hey, we eat frog legs at home! It's considered a delicacy and an honor to eat the symbol of our homeland! When you eat a frog, some of their holy spirit becomes a part of you!" Kero said, nodding proudly.

This belief vexed Fakir.

"How come no one's eaten you then? As a prince _and _a frog, I bet you're double the holiness." Fakir calculated.

"Now _that _would be cannibalism!" cried Kero.

After breakfast, Kero decided depart so that he could find Gloria and speak to her himself, though he would not be able to question her past without the readers finding out secrets that he did not want them to know. He wished so desperately for a peace between the Swan Kingdom and the Mermaid Kingdom! Their battle is the reason he was cursed like this. It wasn't right!

He held his breast and opened his eyes to find himself at the café Gloria worked at. And there she was, a broom in her grasp. Various "mews" were whispered from one kitten to another. Benito, or the dance instructor formerly known as "Neko-sensei," proudly sat with a bragging chest and closed eyes.

Gloria did not use her broom to sweep or to gather leaves and dust but to model a microphone. The song Ave Maria was a theme song made in heaven for the plaza. The lyrics cascaded from her lips to the ears of the world and persuaded them that a deity was performing a live concert. It was a darling performance to be an audience for.

The final note was landed and Kero proceeded to applaud.

"Bravo!" He cried, disturbing Gloria's peace and breaking her away from her euphoric ecstasy.

"Y-you again…"

"You've really changed from your old ways. You've become so mature yet so shy and withdrawn."

He added, "Gloria Neptune."

She peered up at him in surprise.

"You know my whole name, is that right… I still never learned yours." The humble girl uttered.

"Ouji Kero. Pleased to make your acquaintance! Again."

"Frog prince… Your real surname must be Anura, am I correct?"

"You are. You're a bright mermaid."

Her eyes quivered at the mention of her species but calmed when she grinned to herself.

"So I played with a frog prince so long ago."

"Listen. Let's get this straight. You're the princess of the Mermaid Kingdom. I am the prince of the Amphibios kingdom. Fakir already knows who you are. I told him."

Her eyes seemed to jolt and extreme anger flickered in her normally deep blue eyes. She slapped him on the cheek she neglected this morning. A red imprint resulted.

"You have no right to tell him that!"

"He is the one that can give us the power to return home!"

"He is the one I'm in love with and the one I want to be with!"

This shocked Kero and put salt in the wounds of his heart.

She did not care if readers would find out this history she direly sought to hide before.

"It occurred a day before I decided to run away."

"No, you can't tell stories! The Swan kingdom can read this!"

"So what?! I'm not returning there anyway! I know that Princess Ahiru is here. I know how they got here! I know more than you do!"

"You lie!"

"Do I?" Gloria rhetorically asked.

An innocent mermaid basked in the flood of bubbles brushing by her fins and scales. She performed a maneuver related to a plane's barrel roll without a care in the world. The vast sea seemed to expand exponentially but she knew if she swam towards the horizon, there would be land and a place she was forbidden to travel. It seemed magical to never worry about what existed beyond the world she knew but at the same time, there was a sorrow embedded in her ignorant bliss that throbbed like an active heart.

"Prince. This is horrible! You love the girl that was by your side when you woke up and forget my voice! Why! Is my song not strong enough for anyone's heart?! Do I need to lose my fins and voice to be with you!" An internal battle waged between her heart and common sense as she scoffed at herself.

Mermaids expressed stories through the art of song while Swankind expressed stories though the art of dance. Both talents were equally formidable but neither race would admit it.

"A nice sunny day, huh?" Gloria emotionlessly stated.

The days were without a spell of thunder and lightning in the common blue sky. They were so wonderful that they did not seem special to her anymore. But today's events would prove to break this regular day.

A catastrophic being ruined the atmosphere and, in the middle of nowhere, crashed apocalyptically in the middle of the sea. Shore was close by, thank goodness.

"What the heck was that?!" gasped the mermaid, plunging under the surface to gander at the suspicious being from the heavens.

Without a second thought, she went out of her way to save him. He was immersed in the water so heavily that she would be surprised to find him alive. Gloria kicked her tailfin robustly and swept him onto her shoulder. Lifeguards would be esteemed.

"Where the heck did he come from? This land dweller." An airship hovered away from the scene of the crime. There were no insignias or graphic details of where the airship had originated.

"Hey, you, come back to get this guy! Wait, stop!" She waved recklessly.

His lungs were full of water by now and she would soon need to practice her resuscitation. She blushed as she glanced over at the young man.

He was grimacing even in unconsciousness. His olive green hair drifted against the ride of water. Though his eyes were closed, she was sure that they could not be ugly. Tethered rags dressed his poor body. His presence seemed to stain the beautiful sea with ink. He was a young Fakir.

She entered a cove and dumped his body along the white sand. An evergreen cliff was erected naturally by the shore line.

"Here we are! I hope he's not dead yet…"

She lethargically lowered her jaw to his face when she witnessed a silhouette in rehearsal. It was none other than the princess of the Swan Kingdom, **Princess Ahiru! **She was legendary and she was as old as she was! It was said that it was so unusual to not find her dancing or wearing a tutu that she gained the title "Princess Tutu." What a splendid name!

A young maiden with legs that she would never had using them to the best of her ability. How Gloria envied her. But she had no hatred in heart. It was ironic that she was one of the few mermaids to not loathe Swankind or humankind. She would never admit this to herself however.

The melody of the nutcracker played. Her silhouette introduced the vivid colors of her profile. She practiced under a gazebo, pirouetting by herself to perfection on top of the cliff by the shore.

There was something eerie about her. Silver ribbons danced with her ankles, holding up to a par of grace that a mermaid could not possibly contain, in her opinion. Her salmon-orange hair ran beneath swan feathers and skin as fine as satin covered her premature anatomy. Her cheeks still had baby fat and her hands and limbs were tiny and soft.

"Be gone with you, tragic heroine!" Said an elderly voice full of wisdom and alarm.

The mermaid thrashed against back into the sea and hid herself against the banks of water. Her hair flowed brilliantly as she sharked around a stone and lodged away from the Princess's sight.

The silhouette stopped dance, feet folded against each other in balance.

"Who are you talking to?" Murmured a cute voice. She gallantly pirouetted to the scene of the young drowned man who resembled Fakir in every manner.

"He's going to die if she doesn't resuscitate him!" Gloria told herself.

"This is beautiful! Who could this new character be?" cried a voice familiar to all librarians. Drosselmeyer. He revealed himself from the bushes, levitating supernaturally. Feathers dressed his curls and he looked no different than his elderly character did during Chapter of the Egg and Chapter of the Chick.

"The swan princess that loves Mytho enough to be my puppet and aid me in getting more characters for my stories is showing interest in this boy! Everything is in place now that I have my special one by my side again!"

The words "I exist" on the page of "The Prince and the Raven" were lonely. Ahiru's body was reported missing after Drosselmeyer killed librarians that invaded his collection and spotted the body. Some librarians escaped and lived to tell the tale. How could the ghost of Drosselmeyer hurt people?

"So that's where her body disappeared to? … Hey, wait, you shouldn't be leaking this information to the readers!" Kero wondered. Ahiru delicately placed an index finger under the unconscious boy's chin.

"I don't **care** about them! I'm never going back to that damned world again. Let me continue…"

"Drosselmeyer! Stop talking about me like that!" The young Ahiru bitterly cried.

"You're terribly dreadful. Are you two-timing Mytho! Ha ha ha!"

"How can you use me to kidnap people! You have to stop it! You told me you would if I came with you! Instead you killed all those people around my body!" yelled Princess Ahiru, age 10.

"What can you do about it! You want to correct my errors, do you not?! All of you people are fools! But if you don't do more amusing things, things will be worse for you anyway! Ha ha ha ha!" Drosselmeyer maniacally laughed.

_Meanwhile…_

A drumstick incessantly buffeted the shins of the author.

"Hey, stop that! It hurts!" Drosselmeyer cried.

"You were mean to Ahiru-zura!" cried Uzura, proceeding to beat his ankles to a pulp.

"I did say I did things I regre-ow! Uzura-chan!" He woefully yelled.

A frozen gear portrayed the public display of story. Ahiru grimaced inside of it as the story proceeded.

_Returning…_

Princess Gloria's eyes widened in peril.

"What the heck! What's she doing with that ghost!" Gloria's head formed more questions than she could process.

"Drosselmeyer… I want to go in the story!"

"I told you. You must find me interesting characters! Interesting, interesting! You will be the star! Isn't that what you want?!"

He rest his hands on the shoulders of the young girl.

"No! I want to save Prince Mytho!" She jerked him off of her, shrugging his shoulders to and fro.

"What? You feel sorry for him ever since your first and only Ball of Kingdoms? He challenged the King of the Wolves! In my story, he is a prince that is loved by all and loses the heart that loves everyone in return to save those he loves! Isn't that beauty in itself?! Nobody else misses him, Ahiru-chan! There is place for him where he is! Let him be the way he truly is: lonely! Such an admirable character! He is a perfect protagonist!"

"That's not true! I care about him!" Tears manifested at the corners of her eyes.

"Then get me more characters! Like this boy! He will die if you do not dance for him anyway! Isn't he a beautiful character?"

"Fine…"

Ahiru poised her hands in the air, twirling them in a cycle. She then extended her hand to Fakir and grabbed his hand. This was a ritual that not even other mermaids could perform.

The lifeless body of what seemed to be Fakir was dragged up and his eyelids resided halfway on the film of his eyes. His eyes were mesmerized by the sparkles of Ahiru's dance.

"What the heck is she doing! Whatever it is, it's working!"

The strangest event followed. Fakir's jaw dropped and a channel of water escaped his mouth. It was a body of water that shuffled around them like a streamer and evaporated in a shot.

Fakir's eyes split open in an instant. Gloria was supposed to save him. Not Ahiru.

"He's alright!" Gloria sighed relief but miserably thought.

She could not save people like that. She could not dance like that. She was not as pure as that! She wanted to save the human boy's life.

"Who-where am I?" He jerked his hand away from Ahiru's.

"Those eyes!" Drosselmeyer gasped. "Those dark eyes! So you are the love child that my son had with that woman! He would not stand for arranged marriage."

"Stop talking about my father like that!" The young man yelled.

"I pity you. You are born in this world the way you are."

"What the heck are you talking about!" responded the olive-headed young man, also 10 years of age.

"Ho ho! I knew we would meet someday! Ahiru! Get him!" Drosselmeyer yelled, opening his literature for "The Prince and the Raven."

"I don't know who you are and I don't _care_ who you are. The both of you. Do whatever you want with me."

"No!" Ahiru cried. An alluring pink illumination enchanted her hair.

"No one should throw away their lives like this!" Ahiru argued!

"You have no choice now! None of you do!" Drosselmeyer reminded them.

"You're wrong! I do!" Ahiru yelled.

"The Prince and the Raven" ripped a hole through time and space before its binding.

"I'm tired of listening to you!" Ahiru screeched.

"You rebel! Stop!" Drosselmeyer commanded.

She set foot into the portal that the book created. It was an abyssal lip of the universe.

"Don't leave without me!" yelled the young boy.

"Stay here! I don't know who you are either! But anyone… no one should throw their life away for Drosselmeyer!" Ahiru warned the boy.

"Drosselmeyer!" Fakir's onyx irises jittered.

Before Ahiru could traverse, Fakir whisked away her hand. She was whipped around with her back to the portal and her vision dedicated to the young boy clad in a peasant's dull colors.

"What gives _you_ the right to throw away your life?!"

Drosselmeyer snatched her other hand.

"You still have a purpose to fulfill!" the author seized her hand with greed.

"No!" Ahiru exclaimed as she became unbalanced and tipped backwards.

The trio of them fell down the abyss and the book's portal was sealed away.

"What the!" gasped Gloria.

The following is knowledge that no one but Drosselmeyer would know.

As they dropped for what appeared to be infinity. Drosselmeyer cursed himself. He was only conscious one. Their hair was flying as they interrupted the continuity of the darkness. Ahiru's feathers played across her cheeks and her tutu danced without her body.

"How dare you, Ahiru! My story!"

Ahiru and Fakir still held hands as they dropped and lost consciousness.

A red thread had been fastened around each of Ahiru's limbs and Fakir's limbs. They shared a thread, suspended at their wrists and tied in bows. They shared the origination of the other threads, which lead to rock bottom.

"The threads of fate! I'll tear them all, you traitorous girl!"

Drosselmeyer fought the strange air resistance and clenched onto a red thread of Ahiru's.

"Take this!" He prepared to rip the threads with his own hands.

Everything in his power failed.

"I write destiny! This cannot be!" The elder cried in disbelief but soon bore a wily grin.

"If that's what way you want it!" He planted his hand on front of Ahiru's skull and thrust upon it heavily. As soon as he let go, Ahiru was nothing but a canary-yellow duck and the feathers of her headdress molted scattered above them as they continued to drop. Each feather was a memory of love that disappeared.

"No memories, no humanity! Ha ha ha! And what's this, my grandson!" Drosselmeyer relocated himself behind Fakir.

"You are so handsome! It's too bad you'll have to grow up again! I'm really glad you are related to me! Ha ha ha!"

With that, Drosselmeyer shoved the young man and after the contact between them parted ways, Fakir was nothing more than a spirit that traveled to womb of his new mother.

"Ha ha ha ha!" chuckled Drosselmeyer. He landed in a rocking chair in a lair composed of gears.

"Perhaps it was a wise decision for you to lead us here, Ahiru-chan! Ahahahaha! Will you still want to save Prince Mytho, the shadow of royalty, as a Duck! Will you still love him! Ha ha ha ha! Princess Tutu!"

Gloria slithered from the rock lodged in the water to the shore where the book rest. The water's limits did not scathe it's pages.

"This book… This other world with people! I lost another one that I saved! Why are land dwellers so cruel to me!"

Panic-stricken, she wedged the book open with her moist hands. She could not understand a single word.

"How does anyone read these! I want to be in here too! Take me, Drosselmeyer!"

She turned the pages to the end. The text wrote itself and as it go to the end of the very last page, golden dust appeared and materialized into a new one.

"I can't stay in this world anymore!"

And so she swam into the territory between sea and land with her book in hand. Were the pages not growing wet and shredding themselves away? Forget King Nepture, forget the Mermaids, that would be her goal.

So she swam through the roughest rivers and the most placid lakes. Perhaps it wasn't smart for her to go through them, however.

The book slipped out of her hold!

"No!"

It was the very same river she met Prince Kero.

_"It's only been less than an hour and I feel like I know you so much! I've never spoken to a human before. I've spoken to other mermaids and ghosts, sure, but never a human!"_

"After that, I went to Drosselmeyer's gravesite without even knowing it. I was searching all over for the book that I lost and by the river, there was a graveyard and his tomb. Against the tomb was his book. And… I saw Drosselmeyer's ghost. I spoke to him. And here I am. There's no other place I would rather be. There's no discrimination here and if there is, I haven't seen it. I have legs! I am a land dweller! _I _can be the one who is cruel now!"

"Don't you know that King Neptune is worried sick about you?!" said Kero.

"Father…" Guilt pierced her heart but anger soon replaced it, "It does not matter! He wants me to be a military strategist who will overthrow the Swan Kingdom and cover their land with water! He does not see what I have learned here or who I have met here!"

She continued, "Everyday since the new fall semester, Fakir has visited my café. Research that had to do with transformation. He's so adamant, so strong, so bold! I recognized him right away but I was so overwhelmed by him that I didn't know what to say to him. Little things like talking to him were so wonderful. I had been searching for him ever since that day, just to see what it would be like to know him. I suppose because you are here he has figured out a lot of things."

"We know that his mother was not the same one he had in the story but he doesn't. He doesn't know he has a right to be in the world like we do."

"That's beautiful! And isn't it better that way? I can stay in this world with him and you can do as you please. I cannot dance like 'Princess Tutu' can but I can sing and Fakir should be happy with just that! We are all happy! He can't still be in love with a duck!"

"He knows she's not a duck, you fool!"

"Don't tell me you told him!"

"I am not your ally. So what if I did! It won't matter! Everything will be done with by tomorrow!" Kero assured her.

This idea conflicted with Kero's morality and his own desire to be rid of this curse. Ahiru's father was the one to curse him after all. She was in his debt!

Later upon the eve, the party of Ahiru, Fakir and Kero met at their destination; Kinkan Clocktower. Ahiru gazed nostalgically upon the sight of the threatening powerhouse of creative abuse. She rest in Fakir's arms for the last time.

"Ahiru. I'm going to miss you. Even if you were always a duck since Mytho's heart returned to him, I will always see you as Princess Tutu."

Tears drizzled from Ahiru's eyes. Kero could not help but feel guilty. Maybe this was a mistake! What if Ahiru was not his true love? Would a creature such as him ever find true love?!

"Why are we travelling so far from home if all you need is my copy of the book?"

"I won't be able to live with myself if I say good bye to Ahiru in my own home. This is the best place I can think of." explained Fakir.

Fakir imagined the days ahead of him. He imagined Machiko-sensei lecturing him for emotionally ignoring his academic duties. He imagined his dances lonelier than they ever were before. He imagined a another girl, any girl, trying to replace the emptiness in his heart. He would probably pretend to love in order to move on. If did come to love again, would it be as strong and as real as the feeling he felt now?

Fakir brought an old duck feather quill to his attention. He would use this to alter the fabric of the story. What would he write? A character made in the story should never be allowed to go beyond his world. That's how everyone felt. He was not the same as Mytho or Rue or Ahiru or Kero or Gloria. That was his feeling .

* * *

Yes, this was a friggin long chapter for me to write. XD Sorry it took so long. I actually got done with the "rough draft" if you will much earlier. But I had so many kinks to fix! R&R! 


	8. Destiny likes the Number 4

**Kiss of an Animal Princess**

**Plot of the Past so Far: **Ahiru was a real Princess. Mytho was a real Prince. Rue is (soon to find out). Fakir also belongs in reality but does not know it. Prince Kero knows it though. But does that mean he is evil? Or is there something deeper going on?

**The Difficulties: **How has Drosselmeyer come to put so many people in his stories? It has been years since Princess "Tutu" went missing. And before that, other people from the natural world went missing as well. What instrument did Drosselmeyer use for such criminal deeds?

**Notes: **I'm really sorry for not writing for a while. It's not like I forgot this story. My brother came over to visit. It IS summer after all. I'm still passionate about this story and I have the next chapter fresh in my mind. I wanted to add the next chapter's plot with this one but it's too much. I wanted to separate it. **This chapter starts off in the past and then goes back to reality but during the song, the story revisits the past even more further back. It's not THAT confusing.**

**REVIEW SHOUTOUTs:  
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Thank you guys! I know this is unprofessional but I love getting comments. XD I know my updates are slow nowadays.

Also thank you Mesna, for reading my story as well!

* * *

**Chapter 8: **Destiny likes the Number 4

_Several years ago…_

Why is it that some people find love so easily? Why is it that land dwellers act so selfishly and that was all they could blindly see? It must have to do with the songs her Undine designated to her.

Searching and searching. What was this isolated mermaid looking for? Smashing her body along the rapids, she landed into an easy current that swept her across a distance while she drifted in an **unconscious state.**

Searching.

The way Gloria met Drosselmeyer for the second time was at his grave after she left Kero behind.

She wasn't supposed to meet the Frog Prince, Kero Anura. She had no feelings for the prince who lacked charm and was as tall as her. She was not supposed to see Princess "Tutu." That princess did not even notice her! She was not supposed to briefly meet any Prince other than the one her father had agreed for her to under arrangement.

Now she lay against the bank of land, near the area of a graveyard.

"Gloria."

The haunting owner of the voice sat upon his own grave. Drosselmeyer. And his book leaned against his tombstone. How did it get there?!

Her eyes twitched from afar. Consciousness had returned to her after her long journey and her long rest.

The distance between her and the tomb on land seemed colossal! It resided in healthy grass and miserably black soil.

"Come, child." The author's spirit beckoned.

Gloria painfully stared at the land she could not easily travel across. She lopped onto the solid earth. Dozens of small rocks protruded the surface and scratched against her lower body.

"Ouch…" She winced.

"Come, come!" Drosselmeyer chuckled. His image was transparent and his feet were firmly planted on the top of his grave, above his name written in English as if he was a celebrity returning to marks he or she left in California.

"Be patient!" Gloria snapped as she struggled to inch like a worm to the location of the grave.

Moving on land was no easy task for a mermaid.

"Who are you?" Gloria demanded.

"Someone who has known you for a very long time." He answered a puzzle with another.

Gloria wanted to ask so many more questions but her mind would only register one at a time.

"The last time I saw you… You were with Princess Tutu. I've never met the girl in my life but I could tell. I knew who she was already. I've only seen one dancer in my life and her dance surpassed her. Everything about her was pure and beautiful."

"You are correct. That was indeed Princess Tutu you saw."

"Who was that young man?" Gloria asked.

"He is my grandson. Yet he does not know it. Do you want to claim him before another dancer does? If so, I definitely grant you permission."

"What?!"

"You are beautiful, Gloria. Aren't you tired of watching? You must be tired of those other girls dancing."

"Whatever do you mean?" The young brunette girl uttered. He had pressed a button but she would not bear any sign of slight weakness.

"Humans value their eyes more than their ears. The first thing they notice about anything is how it looks and what it does. But your talent soothes the ears and no one but mermaids can see you perform your own dance underneath the water. What a shame."

The Aquarian princess absentmindedly stared at the elderly man and lacked the words to retort with.

"Don't you want to tread on land?" He continued.

"This conversation is not about what I want or me, so please tell me what is happening!" Gloria bluntly yelled.

_To the present day, at the stroke of midnight…_

Fakir crunched his teeth together. Digits of perspiration beaded on his forehead as he navigated in his hand to the page yet again.

"I don't get it. Why aren't you changing the words?" Kero muttered in disappointment.

"I'm going to try again." Fakir stated dryly as he challenged the book before him.

The literature was writing their every movements and their facial expressions. The page magically jotted down the intoxicating fable. If ducks could frown, Ahiru's bill would be broken.

"Hurry, the text is writing really fast! And it's making a mockery of you!" yelled the frog prince.

The words in the literature as of this second scribbled the sentence "Fakir tried to write the words he wished to express but had no power to."

"Alright, before it moves on to the next page! Now!" Kero exclaimed.

Fakir jabbed the ink of his quill on the period at the end of the previous statement. His hand quivered for a surge of power fighting for freedom beneath his hand.

"Quack!"

"It hurts!" Fakir gritted his teeth furthermore as he fought to prevent the words of the story from doing whatever they pleased with its characters.

But he failed, his hand was repelled from the book and his body emerged from his chair, both falling over to the side.

"Fakir!" Kero kneeled by his side and supported him by clenching onto his torso.

"Why won't it let me change the words?" Fakir rubbed a subtly bruised cheek and broke the contact with the frog prince in order to retrieve the mundane quill.

His hand was severely bruised by the supernatural power bided by their story.

"What will it take to give Ahiru the best life she can have!" Fakir yelled.

Ahiru's crystal blue eyes sparkled when she recognized his spoiling effort. Poor Fakir.

"Rrow!"

"Benito." A docile hand relaxed on Neko-sensei's head, gentle fingers playing with his fur.

Gloria's hopeful cerulean eyes watched the clouds sail by in the abyssal darkness of the night.

"I am free of those mermaids' songs. Free! No more unrequited love!"

"Rrow!"

"With no one to turn to by his lonesome, even I can fill the void in his heart. The void that a duck cannot fill." Gloria's voice was longing yet cruel.

Kero had his own agenda and so do Gloria. This was the peaceful life she had worked for. It did not matter that during every day he spent time with Gloria that he devoted his research to helping Princess "Tutu." It does not matter that his heart poured onto the object of his affection and that Gloria was not that object.

There was hope for her. There would be no one to tell Fakir his origins. There would be no one to tell him that his hopes and dreams were closer to him that he thought. All of his crushed feelings could fall on her for comfort.

As long as somebody was there for her, anybody, she did not care. It helped that she knew Fakir closely and that he was as attractive as he was. Beyond looks, he had many talents, from dancing to literature. He had a balance of beauty and brightness.

Gloria snapped out of her thoughts. She was too engrossed in the thoughts of Fakir, that heartthrob. Benito eagerly awaited action from her.

"Hey Benito, how do you like this song? It's relatively new. It's a sensation though. Some day I'll get a phonograph and you can hear the Carpenters!"

"Rrr?"

"You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you, Benito?"

"Reow."

She scratched her throat momentarily and whispered luxurious, sweet music soon after.

"_Why… do birds suddenly appear?"_

A memory returned to haunt her…

Gloria had journeyed further at a very young age underwater, neglecting to meet her tutor for marine summoning lessons. Even at the age of 9, she comprehended that the ethics of those classes were not there.

As soon as she resurfaced, she discovered a horrible crime unfolding before her.

"Pansy boy, what gives you the right to even talk to the King Sebastian, king of wolves, so rudely?!"

Rough adolescent punks formed a semi-circle that crowded a very weak lad with holy white hair and stunning gold eyes that churned with pain and the reflection of his opponent. His outfit never changed; a royal blue shirt, pants as white as his hair and a cloak to sit on his back and shoulders.

Behind the bunch stood an indifferent king garnished in raw wolf fur. His hazel hair cascaded down his back to a length lower than that of most girls. Finely shaved facial hair sketched above his lips and at the tip of his chin. His face was chiseled and stoic. Perhaps he could defeat Fakir in the drab costume contest.

"_Every time, you are near?"_

Prince Mytho suffered from the martial art of "Italian Karate." Two henchmen crudely yanked his arms so far away from his chest that they were rendered powerless.

"Can't do much without your silly sword now, Prince? Can you?!" said another man, extending claws from his beastly hands.

"That's horrible!" yelled a tiny voice from Gloria's lips. If it weren't for the fact that her voice was of a high pitch, almost squeaky and annoying, it would have been serious.

From the far edge of this secluded pond, Princess Gloria made herself apparent. Outraged.

"What the hell are you? Why! If it isn't a mermaid! A real one! A little one! What a treat! Maybe it was a good idea to have the ball on Azure."

Mytho collapsed as the brutal attention from his enemies focused on Gloria.

"That's _Princess Gloria_ to you!"

"A princess! And where would you keep your hole!"

"Wha--what are you talking about?"

"I don't mind 'em young."

This stupid man who shed claws waded in the pond, where so many a swan flocked away to the sky for safety.

He charged against the handicapping water and sliced and diced a lovely swan before it could even get 2 feet above water.

Gloria gasped.

"You didn't have to do that!"

"But I wanted to." Simpered the idiot.

"People like you…"

"People like you!"

"_Just like me…"_

An undine with skin as pale as moonlight and fins as dark as ink. It's long nails grasped a trident that was subpar compared to the one her father owned but would work to do what she prepared to. Her hair was teal and complicated but never a mess.

"Undine! Kill those people around the Prince!"

"As you wish, Princess Gloria. You are giving me an order that you will regret but nonetheless I shall follow your order."

The man who appeared to be the Wolf King shut his eyes and receded, disappearing without a trace before his colleagues had a chance to inquire about these consequences.

Sharp fangs from undine's threatening mouth scratched the air as a howl of Aquarian tragedy signaled their death. Gloria made sure to aid Prince Mytho.

"_They long to be…"_

"Prince…"

The undine dragged their dead bodies beneath the water. The water in each of their bodies froze into ice and turned into shards that ripped their bodies apart.

Gloria sat next to Prince Mytho with love heavyset in her heart.

"I saved you from getting your body all clawed up."

His shirt was shredded however. But his chest remained unscathed.

"So pretty…"

**There was a price to pay for disregarding ethics.**

The undine returned the surface.

"You used me. You made kill so many for the sake of one person. Your lack of rationality is unforgivable, Princess Gloria. You did not even use me as an act of good will."

"What are you talking about? This _was _good will!"

"This was foolish. Your true suffering will begin."

"What…?"

"Everyone you fall in love with will never return that love."

"Stop being stupid, Sylphia!"

"That's punishment 11. There's 89 punishments that are far worse. There will be songs of a mermaid who did such an act and earned such a fate."

"That's… that's stupid! You can't decide what happens to me before I…! I…"

The prince's body twitched.

"Wake up will you?! I am the woman that saved you!" Gloria immaturely snapped. Her voice was high-pitched and impatient.

"Woman? Don't get ahead of yourself. You're still 9 years old."

His body quivered yet again.

"You should sing him the song to wake him. That's all I'm giving you."

Sylphia was making this experience more painful than it had to be.

"_Close to you…"_

"Just watch. He will wake up and see me and **love** me." Gloria told the Undine.

"You? And a human? Unheard of. Why is this human child here, anyway?"

"_Why do stars fall down from the sky?"_

The child-like version of herself extended her hand as sang her heart out. It was a different lyric and in a different language but her style was still there, still the same.

Swans had returned to rekindle in love, twisting their necks about each other.

Were they so oblivious to the death that had happened prior to their encounters? Did no one notice the red intoxication from the previous bloodshed in the pool?

There she was. **Rue. **A scullery maid as pale as a ghost with dark burgundy hair. A soft maid's headdress sat atop her head. Pure white lace fell at the hem of her maroon dress.

She appeared, swirling about several times in the act of a pirouette.

As soon as she stopped, her scarlet eyes trembled when they saw the prince in his current condition.

"_Every time… you walk by?"_

"It's time to go. There is a reason that you are not ready to find love and you still have not learned it."

"No, we can't leave him like this!"

"He is safe with someone who knows love more than you do." The Undine coldly informed her.

Rue ignored the mermaid's and the Undine's presence. Was it because she was overwhelmed with worry for the Prince? Or maybe humans could not see her! Or maybe she was oblivious to the foreign mermaids altogether!

The tailfin of the Undine squeezed around her body and jerked Gloria into the water against her will. Rue did not care, Mytho did not notice.

"Prince Mytho!" Rue hurried to him. Wretched worry howled in her voice.

"_Just like me, they long to be…"_

Gloria's vision lurked under the water and the distance from her prince and herself grew exponentially.

Rue vigorously shook the unconscious prince to no avail.

"_Close to you."_

Before the distance brought them out of her sight, Rue brought her lips to the Prince's. But it did not look innocent. It was a gesture of love.

Bubbles surfaced from Gloria's ajar lips as her consciousness streamed away.

Beads of mermaid tears found themselves forming at the corners of her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Benito. I can't finish the song."

Smack against the wall. That's what happened to Fakir as he futilely tried to change the book for what seemed the 80th consecutive time.

Bruised flesh usurped the skin of his hand and his back was a bonus he did not need. Try. The act of "trying" could not always change everything.

Fakir dragged himself back to the tossed chair, propping it on four legs and sinking himself into it, hissing at the pain of his battered back.

"Fakir. C'mon. This is brutal, you should get some rest." Kero batted his hands wildly like a cheering fan in a baseball stadium.

That is what the frog prince said. This was the frog prince who shouldn't care about the opponent in the way of his Fiancee's love. So why did he?

"No." was all Fakir murmured.

An odd silence followed. Ahiru fluttered to Fakir's back, hugging him with her rough wings. He shouldn't stress himself so much!

"Quack!" Ahiru retorted, panicking for his welfare.

The words on the pages were writing themselves.

"I'm going to make sure that Ahiru, no matter what, gets what she…"

He snatched his old quill.

"DESERVES!" He stabbed the end of the very last letter. For some reason he was able to endure the pain channeling through his hand from the words that wished to carve their organized destiny.

"Fakir! It worked!" Muttered Kero, astonished and hopeful.

"Write something!" Kero added.

Fakir scorned at the power. What could he write? What could he possibly write to help Ahiru? What could he write to change destiny?

"Ahiru…" Fakir first wrote, gruesomely slow due to the struggling power. He smiled almost sadistically as tears trailed down his jaw.

"Ahiru…. will… have… the… best… life… she… can… and… the… best… life… she… deserves. By… love… alone, she… will… be… sent… to… her… home… and… find… a… way… to… return… to… being… Princess… Tutu… Princess… Ahiru."

He dotted his period and his hand profusely bled. The story did not move after that. He couldn't help but let the crimson stains cake the page. Never fear, they disappeared and so did Fakir's injuries. What Fakir did not see was Ahiru.

The feather on her head had been gleaming throughout the affair but returned to its dim quality after the ordeal. Ahiru hadn't paid attention to her feather herself.

"Huh? My hand…" Fakir mumbled, flipping his hand constantly.

"What was that…?" Kero questioned, referring to single feather on Ahiru's head.

"What was what?" Fakir uttered.

"Nothing… Oh, the story stopped writing itself." Kero brought to their attention.

"Great, I must have screwed something up." Fakir said in a disappointed tone.

A tremor shook the foundation of Kinkan Town. People flew against walls and onto the ground. Baskets of fruit were tossed into the air and landed astray as the fruits that escaped bruised or smashed into pulp or pieces.

A choir of screams shrieked across the land. Although the land was shaking, no earthquakes or faults proved their existence. Why was the land trembling so?

The feather atop Ahiru's head emitted a limitless glow.

"Quack!"

Traditional robes manifested on Kero's body as did the lotus on his head, also glowing recklessly.

"My robes?" Kero mentioned in confusion.

He soon noticed his flower ornament brilliantly glowing, "My Lotus?"

"No…" Gloria whispered as she fell on her arse. The headband buried in the many tresses of her brown hair showered light as well. Her fingers lingered at it in disbelief.

Benito pounced and sought shelter with his family as the tables and chairs in the café fell to ruin.

"Because I was attached to something on the outside… because I was attached to something that belongs to destiny and reality, I am being sent back? This is not right!" Gloria woefully stated, cursing her purchase of the headband that reminded her of Kero.

"Fakir…"

A ethereal necklace revealed itself atop the breast of Fakir. It was the shape of a crescent moon, positioned in an unsymmetrical way, and a heart jewel was suspended inside it, dangling at the center.

"A necklace." was all Fakir could establish.

Kero smiled, laughing. Not in a hysterical way or a particularly evil way but in a relieved manner. So Fakir had the necklace. So Fakir was attached to reality?

"What?" Fakir inquired, finding Kero's behavior conspicuous.

"I guess I'll be seeing more of you than I thought I would have to, Fakir-kun."

"Huh?!"

"Quack!"

A pillar of light consumed their perception of Kero and he no longer existed in the story.

"Where did he go?" Fakir managed to ask immediately, baffled.

The same soon happened to Ahiru. The light had taken her.

"Ahiru!"

Regret soon made him a vessel. Did he really want to send her away? Was it worth it? Did it make him happy that Ahiru was happy? Did it matter that he was happy? Did he-- hey!

Illumination dissolved the tips of his bold fingers. He clenched his hands to see them float to the ceiling as debris of light.

His body dissolved away into dematerializing brittle of light. It did this in a slow process, from head to toe. As soon as it dissolved down to his nose, under his eyes, he could see an oblivion in which nothing but vast space and himself existed.

What occurred next was a parody of an epileptic Pink Floyd lightshow. Amazing rows of lights traveled down him at the speed of sound.

He fainted.

He was not the first.

Gloria, Fakir, Ahiru and Kero lay side by side on dead green grass for a small altar no bigger than a tool shed of a decent size.

Our protagonists were located on a plateau as flat as Florida that stretched for miles and miles on the floating Isle where the adventure is only beginning. Welcome to the Temples. Welcome, to Azure, the land of swans and mermaids, dance and song and love and hate.

* * *

To be continued... What is "The Temples?" And why is it so small? What will happen?! Did anything change as our heroes have returned to this new world? 

R&R


	9. Hearts and Parts

**Kiss of an Animal Princess**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Princess Tutu!

**Author's Note:** Kero is the only one who shall seem like he's Japanese-speaking. This is because his character is based off of the standard shouta lolicon a little. Think of Honey-kun from Ouran Host Club.

Sorry for the long delay. Wow, I must say, I've waited a long time to write this chapter since I first developed the plot.

* * *

**CHAPTER 9:** Hearts and Parts

Drosselmeyer's stories never wandered far from the truth. Whenever a prince or noble went missing, a story about one of many possibilities was written by him and his ethereal quill. The stories became so uncanny and ridiculously consecutive that people began to report him for doing suspicious activity. However, there was poor evidence provided by the locals of Swan Kingdom's capital, a town simply named Lake. Even so, they prosecuted him on those charges and even killed him against the accordance of law.

The buildings were constructed out of glass stronger than diamonds from a lake in the middle of the royal courtyard. This lake was garnished by foliage and ravishing blue roses. A hedge maze formed guardian walls about it.

Currently a woman with nothing but platinum white hair and a crown of feathers tucked under that large body of hair was tripping over herself. Prodigious yellow wings adhered to her spinal cord below the waist from the position that the wings on Princess "Tutu" had herself. It was an everlasting source of yellow brightness.

"Keep your composure, your highness." said an aide of the Queen.

"How ever can I keep my composure! My daughter! She's here, somewhere, in this land! For years, I have lost my husband. I have lost my daughter. I lost a piece of my own heart trying to rule Azure and keep the Swan Kingdom secure from the threat of the Mermaids all by myself. So much as happened… I can't let that Mermaid princess lay a finger on her, now that she's finally returned! I won't have it!" Yelled the Queen like never before.

Her crystal blue eyes verged on tears but now was not the time to mope.

"We shall work to retrieve your daughter safely, Queen Odette!"

Now was the time to search.

Kero looked like a prince in his robes and Fakir looked like a peasant in his rags. Gloria still remained a human and Ahiru still remained a duck.

Ahiru's eyes blurred for but a minute as they fluttered open. It appeared as if Gloria and the Frog prince were engaged in conversation long before she had came to consciousness. Their heads both snapped in Ahiru's direction at the tiny disruption of silence and presence that indicated her consciousness.

"She's awake." Kero informed Gloria.

Ahiru and Gloria shared a glance of encounter. What was this Gloria girl doing here? Better yet, what was Ahiru doing here? The last that she remembered was a book and a light show of some sort. She did not even know if any of it was her own choice.

"Quack!"

Ahiru embarked on a spinning walk in wonder at her surroundings, a vast dead plateau of greens, browns and dismal grays, and soon bumped into Fakir's slumbering body.

"Quack…"

Fakir was here.

For some reason, anxiety had been lifted from her soul. Leaving Fakir alone, miserably, would've been the worst feeling. But he would have had Gloria, if she was still there.

Ahiru queerly managed to place her bill on Fakir's hair. What was their connection?

Kero kneeled down before Ahiru and Fakir. His green hair was a mess no neater than Mytho's hair as usual. His eyes were as bright as she remembered them.

"Are you alright, Ahiru-chan?" asked the prince out of care.

"Qua?"

Pathetic. Men were more focused on a _duck_, rather than a true girl right before their eyes. That feeling of inadequacy left Gloria feeling a Katamari of very old feelings she was tired of having again.

"What's the point of talking to a duck?" She irritably complained, against her normal kind nature.

Ahiru was not flabbergasted. Was this the perfect-mannered lady that gave her competition?

"She's not just a duck." A glare began to tear apart Kero's bipolar face.

"What makes her so important?" A rotting jealousy began to climax in her voice and personality.

"She's right there, she can hear you!"

Ahiru felt agreement course through her veins like adrenaline. Ahiru raised her head with determination.

"What makes you so sure that she is human enough to understand any of us?"

Veins throbbed in her head with undisputed anger as she flew to Gloria's ankle and clamped on it as painfully as she could.

"Ah! Stop it, you monstrosity!" The word "monstrosity" was a harsh and far too severe a term for what Ahiru truly was at the moment. She wagged her leg, thanking Drosselmeyer for giving her a conservative dress that showed nothing of the knickers hiding between her legs. Ahiru wanted legs like these so much! Such beautiful legs.

"Ugh… what's going on…" Fakir rose from his spot like a surviving warrior awakened from unconsciousness on the battlefield.

His hands searched for the pendant that had found a path below his collar bone. It was gone.

Then he geared his attention towards the awesome sight of Ahiru biting Gloria's ankle, Gloria attempting to kick her off and Kero struggling to break up the meaningless fight. Ahiru, Kero, fine, sure. But Gloria?

"Gloria!" Fakir cried. He was indeed surprised.

All three of the fairytale characters froze in their place and gawked. Fakir planted his feet firmly on the ground, clenching his forehead.

"Why are you here? Why… am I here? Where are we!" Fakir asked questions incessantly.

"All of us are now located on the land of Azure. I'm sorry I could not tell you Fakir." Gloria ridiculously tried to explain.

"What are you doing here?!" Fakir snapped.

"I was originally a mermaid and a princess, heir to King Neptune's throne. My title is Gloria Neptune. But I wanted nothing more than to be a land dweller and find love. Drosselmeyer gave me that wish."

"Quack!" Ahiru's eyes bulged.

"A… mermaid?" Fakir was shocked, to say the least. "A princess?! Drosselmeyer?!"

He was disappointed in Gloria. How could she not tell him of such important details?

"I'm sorry." Gloria whispered below her breath as she stared with ignominy at her feet, ashamed of her deceit.

Kero cleared his throat.

"Now… Lady, duck and gentleman, the answer to our problems is right here! You could fight but there more important issues happening! This is the temple The Temples Kokoro. Step inside and ... well... what exactly does happen... Something spiritual I suppose..." He mumbled.

Fakir had revolved and determined the size of the temple immediately.

"But… it's so small." He calculated.

Gloria and Kero shared an exchange of conclusive understanding by looking in depth into each other's eyes. They nodded and only Ahiru noticed it.

"Let's head inside, ne?" Kero smiled falsely.

"There is something you people are not answering. If I had no reason to be here, than why am I? Is there some connection between me and this world?" Fakir was mildly upset but it began consume his behavior as of now.

"You must find out about it yourself." Kero began.

"In there." Kero drew his attention with his index finger to the darkness crawling in the temple.

The entrance to the temple was stone and chiseled to perfection with features that seemed so fine and real that it seemed the place had been petrified by a beast's doing. A network of stone flowers, vines, leaves and butterflies crowned the top of the doorway. There were no windows and no other exits. The roof of The Temples Kokoro was a stout spiral. An elixir of magic swept past it all and a pillar of magic the colors of the rainbow forever extended itself to the sky. It was not blinding, just fascinating. Nothing was revealed in the ajar entrance but pitch black.

They were steering him in a oblivious, vicious cycle.

"I guess there is no other way for either of you to answer my questions? I… still don't know how to feel about any of you. About you, Kero, and you, Gloria… But there is no doubt in mind what I feel for Ahiru. This is progress." Fakir's face was a taciturn one.

"It is agreed that we enter Kokoro then, ne?" smiled the Frog prince.

"I'm entering, regardless of what either of you do." grunted the former knight.

"Aren't you afraid, Fakir-kun? You have no sword to duel with!" Kero asked.

"I do not care. I should not need one." Fakir concluded.

Worry crossed Kero's face but Fakir was right. This was The Temples. Kokoro was a mind over matter area. There was no need for a physical weapon. It would do him no good.

After such a long moment, Fakir proceeded. He only stopped until he felt a tug on his tethered pants by the ankle. Ahiru clamped her bill to his fabric.

"What is it, Ahiru? We have to go inside." He was being foolhardy and reckless.

Ahiru thrashed her wings and lopped onto his stomach, hugging him with her wings. She was slipping due to the lack of fingers but Fakir's arms broke any chance of her falling.

"Be careful."

She found a comfortable spot within Fakir's arms. A blush crept between her eyes.

Without another word, they stepped inside. It would seem a jealous Gloria was to follow them but Kero stole her wrist.

"Gloria." Was all Kero could manage.

Guards adorning wolf fur, swords and spears, encircled the remaining duo and the Temples. A barrier had formed in the entrance, a blockade of magic that resembled the elixir of magic and colors that ran out of Kokoro.

"Our arrangement is off, Gloria. Fakir is here. You are here. We did not plan for it to be this way." Kero frowned lightly. His sadness was sincere but there was no reasonable explanation why it would be.

"What?!" Gloria gasped.

Two of the guards seized both of her arms.

Kero could not bring himself to look any of these dishonest people in the eye. He was no better than them.

"Nice work, son."

The royal leader himself appeared. He looked no different from Gloria's memories; haughty, conceited and wrong. She could notice some features more vividly this time. His hair was long and hazel, of course, and his face had not aged since the last time she met him as well. Some facial hair survived the years but it was never longer than a shave.

"King Sebastian, we have obtained the mermaid princess!"

"I see that. Good work." The vicious man walked towards the vulnerable lass and tilted her chin upwards with a gentle thrust of his hand. He forced her to look him in the eye.

"My, is she pretty. You are that mermaid for years ago that spared Mytho. I never forget a single detail. I see that you have legs now. I might make good use of them."

Gloria's eyes widened. His own eyes were furiously amber and sharp slits divided them.

"Confine her in the carriage. Bond her legs and hands together. But for now, we must wait."

Gloria was stolen away to a different location.

"Curse you, Kero!" Gloria yelled at the top of her lungs.

As soon as she was dismissed, king pulled his attention to Kero.

"Good job, my boy. Good job." King Sebastian murmured.

He pet Kero numerous times on the head as if he were the dog instead of himself. The urge to break down was unbearable but Kero could not wane from his determination.

Ahiru and Fakir were isolated from the outside realm as soon as they set foot inside. The room was but a giant box. Mirrors engulfed all 4 walls. Pillars made of any ornate platinum with a hue of purple tinting the scene stood in the corners.

"This place **is **small." Fakir could not help but stare.

Ahiru faced the west mirror and Fakir faced the east.

A girl resembling Princess Tutu stood before Ahiru. No, that was Princess Tutu! Her smile was so serene that Ahiru could remember how it felt when she smiled in such a way.

The girl was naked on every inch of her body. Her divine feathers were there, yes, yellow wings of a fairy perhaps below her waist on the back and she did not have much of a chest but there was nothing to censor her graceful body in the most intimate parts and Ahiru flushed out of embarrassment.

"Quack, quack, quack!" Ahiru threw her head back and forth gazing to Fakir to the girl on the mirror.

There was no reaction from Fakir. He was still in a stupor, staring at the grandeur of the puzzling place.

The girl on the mirror giggled, politely, and brisk fully "ran" away by pointe. Would it be impossible to follow herself? Ahiru could only find out.

She fluttered from Fakir's arms to the floor. He still was not disrupted.

"I'm sorry. I have to go see this for myself." were the words in Ahiru's heart at that moment.

She soared away, chasing her identity.

"Ahiru?" Fakir had not noticed her departure until now, "Ahiru!"

He tore his face to every angle but still found no trace of the duck. But he did see something new.

A haunted landscape appeared before himself and a vibrant full moon caught his eye within it.

"The moon."

"No matter how many brothers and sisters I have or where we are, we will always watch you, Fakir. You belong to us."

Finally tearing his vision away from the mirror, he discovered his entire world was this melancholy landscape. Every leaf was as scarlet as Rue's eyes and the collection of them forced him to recall the look that ravens give people like him. After his parents died, after he almost died several times… the feeling that it restored in him was never old.

It was a bank of darkness with blue overtones. Ahiru was tired from flying so she rest on the earth beneath her webbed feet. She lay down and shut her eyes for her host's display.

"Ahiru."

Ahiru's eyes opened in a heartbeat.

"Hello Ahiru."

"Quack!"

"This is Kokoro. A place where destined people come to resolve the questions in their hearts."

"Quack?"

"Who am I? I am not only your humanity but an important entity of your soul."

"Quack!"

"Do not get me wrong. I am not completely you. Do you think if you were to become human, you would be exactly like me?"

Ahiru had no idea what would happen if she became human, she never thought of what would happen to her mind and spirit.

"That is a misconception. Drosselmeyer did not curse you to be a duck. He cursed you to lose the part of your soul that has the grace and heart of your dance. The curse was broken only when you agreed to fulfill the role he wanted you to in his story and came forth to save Mytho's heart. By doing this, he separated your heart as well. Not into shards but into different entities. To be whole or at least Princess "Tutu" you needed a piece of someone else's heart."

"I am not completely you. The duck you are now is also a part of your soul. When you were still a little Princess, everyone was so enraptured by your perfect dancing that they could not see your mistakes and flaws. They overlooked them. The duck you are now holds an important part of your soul. Without you, we can't be Princess Ahiru."

The information overwhelmed Ahiru.

"Do you think I am perfect because you are? No. I am the grace and the great things you are. But I am nothing more. I am not you completely. We need to be together in order for you to become whole."

She kneeled down to the duck and hugged her dearly in an instant. Ahiru liked the feeling of this endearment. It was herself after all.

When she opened her eyes, the clone was gone. However, Fakir was there behind her.

She was no longer a duck. Ahiru was standing as Princess Tutu. She wore her signature white Tutu of course and pink slippers. She was no different than she used to be, however, she could feel her personality sharing a place with "Princess Tutu's" for the first time. Fakir was fastening the pendant of a crescent moon around her elaborate neck. The one that once appeared to him before their arrival to this land.

"Fakir?" Ahiru beckoned, pivoting her head slightly so she could see him.

A smile on his face warmed the atmosphere. It was warmer and lovelier than any smile he had worn before.

Sharing his feelings of love was a waste of time and energy.

"Ahiru. Have a good life."

He caressed her cheek with his lips briefly, tasting her heavenly skin for the first and last time.

"Fakir?"

He locked the pendant together. A dreadful sound of pain shook the foundation beneath their feet.

"Fakir!" Ahiru turned around at once. Something was transforming Fakir!

Fakir withdrew from Ahiru, his rags ripping due to the sudden growth and stunt growth of his anatomy.

"Fakir!" Ahiru screamed at the grotesque scene before her.

He whirled around and ran on all fours as he became a large raven-black wolf to wherever he could. Where was the haunted landscape with the moon? Where he could he hide his feelings of pain forever?

Unfortunately for him, he ran outside of Kokoro where his fate was planned. Guards captured him with a nuzzle and shackles. It was not long until he gave in but he had no rest as Ahiru followed him and was snatched by King Sebastian.

"Patience is a virtue."

Fakir barked relentlessly and resisted with all his might. But some magic easily put that anger to submission. He fell unconscious.

"Fakir!" Ahiru's new lungs nearly shattered at the cry.

"Look upon the face that has done all this for you and wishes to marry you." Sebastian clenched Ahiru's torso and prodded a finger under her chin to guide her to a scandalous Kero.

"I don't want it this way, otou-sama…" Kero murmured, crestfallen. He could not face Ahiru in the eye. He could not even face Fakir, even though he lay dormant. What was even worse was that he wanted things to happen this way. It was so much easier when he did not consider the feelings of Ahiru and had not known who Fakir was.

"Where has all your gusto gone, my boy?"

Silence.

"Men, put Fakir with the Mermaid. What fools, bargaining everything that made them powerful for what? Love? Freedom? Rejection and containment are quite the contrary. What fools."

Ahiru did not acknowledge Kero with scorn or contempt but pity.

"Put Ahiru away in a sealed compartment with her new beloved. We have plans to finish." He smiled maniacally.

Giant sea horses with the wings of angels pulled floating carriages and whips cracked at them as they came to a halt.

She had finally just regained her humanity. However, this worse than any experience she had as a duck. She could almost hear the laughter of Drosselmeyer, laughing at her irony.

* * *

El gaspo. D: R&R 


End file.
